Kinovo Plc, the specialist property services group that delivers compliance and sustainability solutions, announces the launch of its second Net Zero Carbon Reduction Plan Report 2023. The report details how the business (which includes Purdy, Spokemead and Dunhams) is building a strategy to deliver on its core values and commitment to sustainability, and represents a progress update of the group’s ongoing journey to Net Zero.
Lee Venables, Kinovo’s Chief Operating Officer commented: “We are continuously assessing our carbon footprint and how it’s fairing against our audacious goal of attaining Net Zero by 2040, a commitment which is 10 years ahead of the UK Government’s ‘Build Back Greener’ plan. Our teams are ensuring that everything we touch, which can have an impact on our carbon footprint, is thoroughly assessed.
“On an ongoing basis we review every aspect of our operations, every stakeholder we work with and the communities we work in, to ensure we’re on track to deliver. In this report, we have put the spotlight on every aspect of our business including the emissions we are directly responsible for and those that lie in our supply chain, so we can continue to build on our net zero strategy.
“In parallel, during 2023 the business has grown significantly with new clients, frameworks, services and projects which naturally has had an impact on our absolute emissions, meaning in the short term we’ve seen an upward spike in emissions. As an example, our businesses reported a combined increase in revenue of 18% for the financial year April 2022 to March 2023. Consequently, while our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions — over which we have control– reduced substantially, our absolute emissions have increased by 40% since last year’s Net Zero Report, as a direct result of our increased spend on Scope 3 purchased goods and services.
“To mitigate this and re-direct our net zero journey, we will ensure the continuation of our robust plan, which includes making ‘greener’ procurement decisions and working more closely with suppliers to actively encourage carbon-reducing behaviour, such as electrifying their own vehicles etc. We will continue to engage with our supply chain and drive improved environmental performance and wherever possible, minimise the needless travel of raw materials across the globe, especially when more local options exist.
“For ourselves, we have already achieved key reductions in energy, transport, waste, and business travel related emissions. We have done this by increasing our fleet’s access to electric vehicles, switching to LED lighting, installing 12 solar voltaic panels at head office, and making investments in low carbon technologies for heating and electrical power generation.
“We’re also making steps towards insulating our buildings, and have reduced unnecessary international travel, which contributes towards our carbon footprint. We are also continually examining how we can avoid buying and using single-use items, as well as avoiding items that are made from scarce resources, or are difficult to recycle. We have shifted our preference to items that include recycled materials.
“Whilst the revenue growth across the group is positive, it’s disappointing to see that our carbon emissions have — inevitably — grown since our first report. We have a plan on how we can turn that figure around; and demonstrate our commitment to net zero. We’re going to evangelise the benefits of going green more widely and ensure our suppliers really understand tangible benefits in jointly supporting our goals. We understand that there are cost elements for most businesses in turns of how quickly they can mobilise a new green way of operating, and so we see the changes coming over time, rather than within the first year of releasing a strategy.
“We are both realistic and mindful that this strategy will deliver results, but not consistently on a downwards linear direction, or overnight which is why we are continuously revaluating our procurement strategy and working closely with the supply chain to support where we can, other businesses in the delivery of their own plans towards net zero. Thanks to this, we are confident to report that we are still on track to deliver 49% reduction in our Scope 1,2 and 3 emissions by 2023 and an 81% overall reduction in all Green House Gas (GHG) emissions across Scopes 1, 2 and 3 by 2040 offsetting any residual emissions via high quality, nature based or direct capture projects and becoming net zero.”
The Net Zero Carbon Reduction Plan Report 2023 is available to download here: https://www.kinovoplc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Kinovo-Net-Zero-2023-6.11.23ii-FINAL.pdf
