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GENERAL NEWS / 31-07-2021

SUSTAINABLE OBJECTIVE: ARANIA’S ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITMENT

Environmental sustainability is currently a priority for Arania. Several plans are being undertaken to improve the carbon footprint and reduce the environmental impact of the company’s industrial activities. This major challenge includes the continuous improvement of Arania’s wide range of certifications related to energy efficiency and environmental protection.

During this year, this action plan includes the reduction of the company’s carbon footprint through the management of GoO (Guarantees of Renewable Origin) and the HAMBEMET project together with Siderex, for the measurement of the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF).

The restrictions resulting from the pandemic led to a direct impact on CO2 emissions. This unprecedented scenario has reduced global emissions of polluting gases by around 7%. However, the global warming trend is still far from the objectives set by the Paris Agreement. Therefore, many industrial players such as Arania are striving every day to push forward the transition to a more sustainable and efficient Industry 4.0.

What is a GoO and why is it useful?

How do we know the origin of the energy we consume? In order to find out, an international convention was created to certify this environmental factor in one year: the Guarantees of Origin and Electricity Labelling. Guarantees of renewable origin (GoO) provide a certification attesting to the production of a certain amount of electricity supply through renewable energy sources or cogeneration.

With a GoO, a company can provide detailed information to its clients on the origin of the energy received and the impact on the environment of its production. A renewable origin refers to electricity produced from non-fossil fuel sources: wind, solar, aerothermal, geothermal, hydrothermal, hydroelectric, biomass…

HAMBEMET: calculation of the Product Environmental Footprint

At the same time, Arania is collaborating with Siderex (the Basque Steel Industry Cluster, of wich Arania is a member) in HAMBEMET, a large-scale project to measure the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) of several companies, thus involving major industrial players in the Basque Country.

This represents the ideal opportunity to definitively harmonise industrial standards with European guidelines by means of a coordinated application of the European environmental product footprint to Basque companies.

What is the Product Environmental Footprint?

The European Union’s Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) is a methodology used to calculate the total environmental impact of products produced in our factories. Its objective aims to provide reliable and comparable information on products, promoting a more sustainable market. Development work on the standard dates back to 2011, when existing methodologies were analysed.

In this way, PEF compares the environmental impact of goods, industrial products or services throughout their life cycle on the basis of various criteria. The main purpose is to set up courses of action to reduce its environmental impact, taking into account the activities of the supply chain (from the extraction of raw materials to the management of final waste, including production and use).

Every product environmental footprint is based on Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCR): a detailed technical guide on how to conduct such a study in a particular product category. The PEFCR complement the general methodological guidance on environmental footprinting by providing further specifications at a product level, ensuring the reproducibility and consistency of these studies.

This led to the Siderex HAMBEMET project, consisting in the adaptation of the existing methodology for the calculation of PEF (based on the European Union guide) to Arania’s product, and in the same way for the other industrial actors involved in this programme.