Carbon Footprint Results 2023

We recently calculated our carbon footprint for 2023. Our carbon footprint is assessed annually as part of our CO₂ management system (CO₂ Performance Ladder).

We map our CO₂ emissions resulting from:
– Scope 1: heating and fossil fuels used by our vehicle fleet,
– Scope 2: electricity (for offices as well as for charging company cars),
– Scope 3: business travel (e.g. air travel, train travel, … other than company cars).

These results show us which activities contribute the most to our total emissions, allowing us to identify where we can take the most effective measures to reduce our carbon footprint.

Carbon footprint 2023

The total carbon footprint for 2023 across all six of our offices amounted to 480 tons of CO₂. This is equivalent to the average annual CO₂ absorption of 20,000 trees.

A total decrease of 28 tons of CO₂ compared to 2022!

As in previous years, Scope 1 (gas and fossil fuels from the vehicle fleet) remains the most polluting factor in our total carbon footprint, accounting for 88%.

When looking at the breakdown by category, there were no major surprises compared to previous years. A slight 3% decrease in heating-related emissions was observed, thanks to energy efficiency measures implemented at our headquarters in 2023. We also installed solar panels in Sint-Niklaas in 2023, which contributed to a small reduction in total electricity-related emissions—despite the opening of two additional offices and the increased charging of company cars at our headquarters’ charging infrastructure. Business travel (excluding company cars) increased by 1%, due to a rise in train and air travel.

Scope 1

In total, Scope 1 was associated with emissions of 421 tons of CO₂. With a share of 94%, the fossil-fuel vehicle fleet remains the largest source of emissions within Scope 1. The CO₂ emissions related to heating across SBE’s various locations amounted to 25.5 tons (compared to 40 tons in 2021), with Sint-Niklaas still accounting for the largest share.

SBE’s fossil-fuel vehicle fleet caused 395.87 tons of CO₂ emissions in 2023. The share of diesel continues to decrease (from 45% to 30%). In 2022, for the first time since we began tracking emissions, diesel vehicles accounted for a smaller share of emissions than petrol vehicles—a trend that continued in 2023.

Although total emissions from the fossil-fuel fleet dropped by 15%, we observed an increase in petrol consumption and related emissions, due to the growing number of employees—and therefore company cars. To provide a more accurate picture, we track the evolution of emissions over the years per FTE for comparisons in our reduction targets.

Scope 2

A total of 40 tons of CO₂ emissions can be linked to electricity consumption (Scope 2). These emissions are mainly due to electricity use at the Sint-Niklaas office (accounting for 44%, compared to 76% in 2022), but the electric vehicle fleet at the Belgian locations already represents a significant 35% (compared to 19% in 2022).

Compared to 2022, total Scope 2 CO₂ emissions increased by 2 tons. This is due to the installation of solar panels, but also the opening of two new offices and the growth of our electric vehicle fleet.
A small note: LeasePlan is still unable to include all home charging sessions in the charging report, so the actual share of the electric vehicle fleet is likely higher.

Scope 3

In total, Scope 3 or business travel activities were associated with 18 tons of CO₂ emissions (compared to 14 tons in 2022). Air travel still represents the largest share of these emissions, at 79%.

Compared to 2022, total Scope 3 CO₂ emissions increased by 4 tons, due to a higher number of flights as well as a 40% increase in the number of kilometers traveled by train.

Reduction targets

When we look at our reduction targets, we see a total decrease of 14% emissions per FTE across all scopes in 2023 compared to 2022 (2.7 tons CO₂ per FTE in 2022 versus 2.3 tons CO₂ per FTE in 2023)! In Scope 1, we achieved a 16% reduction in CO₂ emissions compared to 2022. This is mainly due to the decreased gas consumption at our headquarters and the increase in the number of electric vehicles in our fleet. So, we have met our reduction target for Scope 1.

Scope 2 (electricity) and Scope 3 (business travel) had a total reduction of 6% (from 0.299 tons CO₂ per FTE to 0.280 tons CO₂ per FTE), so the target of 10% was not reached. This is probably because the grey electricity we purchased (in addition to the electricity generated by our solar panels) still weighs too heavily in the final result. Moreover, we observed an increase in air travel. We need to assess whether the target for 2024 is achievable.

Broken down by scope, it looks like this: for Scope 2, we achieved a 14% decrease in CO₂ emissions per FTE compared to 2022. However, for Scope 3, we saw a 14% increase in CO₂ emissions per FTE compared to 2022.