50% of The Company's Total Energy Consumption is From Renewable Sources: ITC ITC Next strategy focusing on decarbonisation and adaptation to build resilience, enhance competitiveness and spur new opportunities

ITC recognizes the significant role corporations can play in addressing the climate crisis and has introduced a comprehensive array of impactful measures. The ITC Next strategy emphasises both decarbonization and adaptation to enhance business resilience, boost competitiveness, and create new opportunities. Over the years, in line with its decarbonisation strategy, ITC has significantly invested in building green infrastructure, improving energy efficiency and adoption of renewable energy. In the company's 113th AGM address, Sanjiv Puri, chairman and managing director, ITC Ltd, shared his vision.

"Today, 50 per cent of ITC's total energy consumption is from renewable sources, with capacity ramped up to over 200 MW. Investments in a high-pressure recovery boiler in the energy-intensive Paperboards Business is slated to reduce coal consumption by over 1,50,000 tonnes annually. Recognising that LEED Platinum-certified Green buildings are 25 per cent more energy efficient and emit nearly 35 per cent less GHG, we have built 40 Platinum-certified Green buildings including iconic hotels. ITC Hotels has also achieved the 2030 carbon emission targets of the Paris Agreement ahead of schedule. ITC is also working with its value chain partners, both upstream and downstream, for decarbonising their operations," declared Sanjiv.

ITC's infrastructure and agricultural operations span 28 states and 7 Union Territories. To protect its assets and communities, ITC has conducted climate risk assessments across 140 sites and selected agricultural value chains, using advanced AI-enabled climate modelling tools. These evaluations, considering various climate hazards until 2100, identify hotspots and guide site-specific adaptation measures.

A key initiative is the climate smart agriculture (CSA) program, covering 2.8 million acres, nearing the 2030 target. CSA builds farmer resilience and de-risks value chains through improved agronomic practices, climate-resilient crop varieties, and mechanisation. A study showed that 70 per cent of villages moved to a high-resilience, high-yield category, up from 21 per cent. Greenhouse gas emissions of selected crops dropped by 13 per cent to 66 per cent, and farmer incomes increased by up to 90 per cent over five years. Encouraged by these outcomes, ITC aims to extend CSA to over 4 million acres by 2030, partnering with the Government of Madhya Pradesh to promote these practices.

To address water security, ITC has initiated extensive demand and supply-side interventions. The integrated watershed development programmes cover 1.6 million acres with over 32,000 water structures. Demand-side measures have reduced agricultural water use by up to 50 per cent across 1.5 million acres. Eight ITC units have received AWS Platinum certification. ITC targets creating water-harvesting potential equal to over five times its net water consumption by 2030. The company is also reviving river basins with negative water balances, benefiting value chains and communities. Success in the Ghod river basin led to similar projects in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh. Urban water projects are underway in Bengaluru, Chennai, and Saharanpur. ITC partnered with the Government of Karnataka to drought-proof 3,00,000 acres and with the Government of Maharashtra to promote water literacy.

Acknowledging that 55 per cent of the world's GDP depends on nature, ITC's Biodiversity Conservation programs cover 4,70,000 acres, aiming to revive ecosystem services and support livelihoods. ITC is also piloting a mangrove conservation program in Andhra Pradesh to create carbon sinks with higher sequestration.

"ITC's climate action builds competitiveness and resilience of its businesses even as it addresses national priorities. While decarbonization projects aid mitigation, the adaptation programmes have been intensified in vulnerable rural areas, leveraging our deep agricultural and community engagement to enable more impactful outcomes," concluded Sanjiv.