Lidl Switzerland has recently implemented a comprehensive CO2 management plan that aims, among others, for a reduction of 20% CO2 per m2 store area by 2020. Lidl Switzerland will be the first major retailer in Switzerland to compensate for its entire operational CO2 footprint, its implementation strategy made possible thanks to its cooperation with Swiss Climate and South Pole Group.
The reduction target of 20% will be achieved mainly by investing in real estate: existing stores will be retrofitted respectively with LED lighting, electric heat pumps and cooling systems can be used with heat recovery. The retailer has set aside 5-10 million alone for refurbishing the existing properties. Lidl Switzerland will also document its emissions as part of its rigorous CO2 management plan.
In addition to reducing emissions by 2020, the retail giant is also working to achieve CO2 neutrality by as soon as 2016. It is doing so by investing in high-quality emission reduction projects by Swiss Climate and South Pole Group. This portfolio of projects includes, for example, Swiss biogas plants, the promotion of energy-efficient cookstoves in India and a REDD+ community forest project in Zimbabwe.
"This ambitious sustainability strategy shows how Lidl Switzerland's is leading and inspiring others in the Swiss retail industry. As South Pole Group, we could not be prouder of this collaboration," says Renat Heuberger, CEO South Pole Group.
An important step for the implementation of Lidl's strategy was the establishment of a comprehensive management plan of their CO2 footprint. In order to secure the incentive to reduce CO2 emissions, Lidl Switzerland will introduce an internal CO2 pricing system, putting a price on CO2 emissions. This price will in the future be integrated into the investment cost accounting of Lidl Switzerland - catalysing, in short, the economic incentive to invest in emission reductions.
"We have essentially made the management of our emissions an integral part of our overall corporate strategy," says Georg Kroll, Executive Chairman Lidl Switzerland.
