Action | Risk Management and Actions | Climate Action | ASUS ESG website, ASUS ESG goal

The Science Based Targets Initiative

The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), launched by the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), provides scientific approaches that can be certied by a third party to limit global temperature rise to below 1.5° within the carbon budget. Under this scenario, companies set reasonable carbon reduction targets. SBT can accommodate future business growth, save money, provide resilience against regulation, enhance investor condence, and spur innovation and competitiveness.

In 2022, ASUS promised to comply with SBTi, actively followed the SBT to formulate pathways and targets for emission reduction, and promoted the entire group to conform to the 1.5° C pathway, to cope with the risks brought by global climate change. In 2022, ASUS completed the group-wide inventory of GHG in terms of Scopes 1, 2 and 3, and developed a group-wide compliance with the SBT. It is expected to obtain the SBT certication in 2023. The main carbon reduction actions are to introduce renewable energy, reduce carbon in the supply chain, develop low-carbon products and improve the energy eciency of products. Lead the subsidiaries and the overall value chain towards ASUS 2050 Net Zero vision.

• 2030: Reduce absolute scope 1 and scope 2 GHG emissions 50% by 2030 from a 2021 base year.
• 2030: Reduce absolute scope 3 GHG emissions from purchased goods and services and use of sold products 30% by 2030 from a 2021 base year.

Actions Taken

Improving Energy Efficiency

Low Carbon Products

ASUS quantifies the potential environmental impacts it may cause in accordance with ISO 14040 and 14044 Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) standards. In order to reduce the carbon footprint generated by our products in their lifecycle, we apply a circular economy mindset into our product design and services, use eco-friendly materials, improve energy efficiency, and extend usage cycles in our transition to low-carbon product development. The amount of plastic used in ASUS products accounts for over 30% of the overall weight of the mainstream products, making it the most commonly used material. Therefore, we work with our major raw material suppliers to explore ways to increase the use of Post Consumer Recycled Plastic (PCR) as much as possible without compromising high quality and durability of ASUS products. Since 2017, more than 1,689 tonnes of recycled plastic have been used in our major products, resulting in a cumulative reduction of approximately 11,607 tonnes CO2e of carbon emissions.

The ENERGY STAR® Program is the strictest energy efficiency program in the world. Continuously reduce carbon emissions during product use by making our software and hardware more energy efficient. The energy efficiency design of our main products is above the ENERGY STAR® standards. Our external power supplies use the highest energy efficiency level in the market, Level VI, to overcome sales obstacles caused by global energy efficiency laws and create competitiveness in the green product market. ASUS newly launched commercial and consumer laptops in 2022 outperform ENERGY STAR® standards by an average of 34.6%.

Supply Chain Carbon Reduction

The supply chain is the main source of greenhouse gas emissions for ASUS. We have analyzed over 100,000 data from environmental footprint surveys over the years and identified key suppliers with emissions exceeding 90%, including makers of panels, motherboards, ICs, wires, power supplies, mechanical components, keyboards, batteries, hard drives, and assembly plants. We also work with them on carbon reduction engagement and communication programs.

The ASUS Carbon Reduction Engagement and Communication Program aims to encourage our suppliers to continuously expand their use of renewable energy, actively request them to improve energy efficiency, and assist them in setting their greenhouse gas reduction targets and SBT reduction targets. In 2022, the proportion of our suppliers in solar power generation increased by 8% compared to 2021, while the proportion in setting greenhouse gas reduction targets was up by 8% compared to 2021. 33% of our suppliers obtained ISO 14064 third-party verification, while 29% of them obtained ISO 50001 certification.

Supply Chain

The supply chain is the most significant source of greenhouse gas emissions for ASUS. ASUS will work with key suppliers to develop a carbon reduction plan that will guide suppliers to continue to refine their processes and improve their energy use in the following manner.

Expand the Use of Renewable Energy

Operation Headquarters Have Received the LEED Platinum Certification

ASUS' carbon emissions came from the use of electricity for office operations. Since 2015, we have built up the ISO 50001 Energy management system to identify hot spots of high energy consumption and improve energy efficiency. Both of our operation headquarters have received the LEED Platinum certification, the top certification for green buildings. We aim to reduce electricity consumption by 1% each year and we have achieved the marginal benefits for improving energy efficiency. The development of renewable energy will become a necessary measure. ASUS signed the memorandum of understanding with renewable energy companies. We map out the short, medium, and long term renewable energy pathways by analyzing the most appropriate scenarios for using renewable energy in global operations and gradually increase the utilization rate.

Case of energy saving transformation - Transformation of heating equipment in Swiss office

In Europe and America, indoor heating is a necessary household appliance that uses fuel and gas as its main source of energy. This is one of the factors contributing to global warming. In response to ASUS net zero carbon reduction goal, our Swiss office took the lead in replacing high carbon emission fuel heating equipment with electric heating equipment, which is more compact and safer compared to traditional models. ASUS also signed a renewable energy supply contract with a Zurich power Company, EWZ, to ensure that 100% of the electricity source for heating equipment comes from clean energy, and to demonstrate our commitment to net zero carbon reduction.

Case of accelerating energy transformation - Use of renewable energy in Dutch office

The Dutch government is promoting innovation in renewable energy by encouraging the power industry to accelerate the development of clean energy sources such as wind, hydropower, and photovoltaics, with the commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 49% by 2030. To comply with government policies, ASUS is taking energy-saving measures in our Dutch office and signed a renewable energy supply contract with Eneco. Our Dutch office uses 81.5% renewable power sources, which is an increase of 2.1% compared to last year.

Pathway of introducing renewable energy

ASUS adheres to the RE100 organization's recognition of renewable energy by purchasing renewable energy technologies that are beneficial for improving the environment and reducing carbon emissions, such as wind energy, photovoltaic energy, geothermal energy, and hydropower. We are also in line with the renewable energy supply and matching system to achieve our RE100 target. In our strategies of purchasing renewable energy, ASUS will also take into consideration our global presence and the current situation of the renewable energy market before planning a phased renewable energy procurement goal, and working closely with the renewable energy industry. In 2022, ASUS expanded the use of renewable energy to our main overseas operating sites to achieve 50% of our overseas offices using renewable energy, and achieve RE15 for our global operating locations. To keep up with the development trend of renewable energy technology, we will adjust our procurement ratio of renewable energy in a rolling manner and take into consideration the level of commercialization of new renewable energy technology, gradually incorporating it into the ASUS RE100 energy portfolio to balance the company's profit momentum and carbon reduction obligations to move towards RE100. 

Innovative Technologies

The technologies needed to achieve the net zero goal by 2050 according to the IEA net zero report, except for wind power generation, solar photovoltaic and electric vehicles which are mature commercial technologies, are mostly prototype carbon reduction technologies, which still requires technological breakthroughs and market testing. That is why we are striving to keep up with the technological development trends and innovation feasibility.

In 2022, we used the vertical accelerator platform of ASUS and Taitah Entrepreneurship Center to seek external innovative technologies, such as carbon capture and storage, carbon rights trading platforms, and waste plastic recycling. We have also evaluated the connection with and the need for innovative technologies, and provided a proof of concept (POC) eld for new startups. We hope to accelerate the commercialization of forward-looking technologies and contribute to the global net zero target through multiple resource investments. ASUS will choose technologies with high carbon reduction potential and commercial feasibility to actively participate in the international carbon market, so that we can not only achieve our net zero target, but also create momentum for new profits.