Going Greener Faster

Insight

Going Greener Faster

Last week EQUANS UK & Ireland announced a strengthening of its commitment to net zero. We talked with responsible business director Jamie Quinn about the background and context for this industry-leading move.

Article Read the article in i-fm.net

This article was originally published by i-FM on 20th July 2022 by Elliott Chase. Reproduced with permission.

The company’s revised roadmap brings forward its net zero target by more than decade. Ambitious, but do-able – and essential in the face of our global climate challenge.

Watching EQUANS, you get the impression that the whole area of sustainability – understanding it, defining the challenges and the opportunities, developing, and implementing effective strategies - is a bit of an obsession. That is by no means a criticism. The science is clear: if growing numbers of individuals and organisations don’t sign up to this sort of attitude, the world is going to be in serious trouble – even more than it already is.

Jamie Quinn, the company’s responsible business director, explains the continued refining of its sustainability targets this way: “The sense of direction in the market is clear – for example, government focus on targets and progress, related to carbon reduction and social value has continued to drive focus and attention at Executive level. The launch of EQUANS last year also brought with it a refreshed focus on targets. For us, our commitment to net zero is essential in terms of our activities, and it is right in terms of our stakeholders and what they expect – our employees, our clients, the communities in which we operate. It’s a bold and ambitious framework, but one that aims to set the direction for the industry.”

Understanding the market

Any market strategy has to be aligned with customer needs, of course; and it is a fair question for any service provider to ask whether existing clients and prospective clients generally are ready to take on the sustainability issue and potentially necessary change in practices and behaviours, as well as the associated costs, even if those can be recouped in the longer term. As a starting point, to what extent do clients need to be educated about the scale of the challenge, what can be achieved, how and when?

“People are at different stages,” Quinn says. “Some are very informed and forward-thinking; others are beginning their journey. There is also some sectoral difference; but of course even within sectors, some are more advanced than others. The trick for us is typically to make it bite-sized, to try to present solutions that will enable the client to have pragmatic, achievable options that can be delivered in the short or medium-term.

“Sometimes we have to go back to the fundamentals. What is a client’s primary business and associated carbon intensity? Do they have a longer-term sustainability roadmap? If not, how can we best help them to develop that? It is then about the data, scenario planning and modelling to offer a more informed view. And then you can move into more technical conversations around investment-grade audits. Increasingly, you are getting underneath the skin of the client’s operations, enabling us to develop realistic interventions and cost profiles, as well as benefits, of course - whether that is around renewable energy, energy efficiency, new equipment and plant or behavioural changes.”

There is a good overview of the EQUANS process in the presentation given by the company at the Workplace Futures 2022 conference. The potential within this process has attracted clients in this service area; but of course, in other cases the company has been under contract to provide other services and the relationship has evolved into the sustainability area in response to client needs.

Needs and expectations

The broad area of ‘responsible business’ is where EQUANS has planted its flag – thus Quinn’s title and a string of related policies and initiatives. And the company isn’t shy about this: “We’ve spent 10 years building our reputation as a responsible business, ensuring we have demonstrable evidence of what we’ve done for ourselves and for clients,” Quinn explains. “We have the capabilities, the skills, the case studies – which means that when a client is going out to tender we’re well positioned around the key areas.”

In terms of understanding the marketplace, understanding client motivations when they do go out to tender is as important as alignment with the general need and expectation. Motivations will vary, of course. At one end of the scale might be a ‘do the right thing’ ambition, while at the other the driver might be cost. A recent Institute of Directors survey found that cost pressures are currently a key driving force in their members’ interest in action on carbon reduction.

Does EQUANS see costs and savings as a significant factor in making decisions around sustainability?

“Yes,” he says, “in many cases. If you go back, say, 10 years the market dynamics were very different – specifically, the lower costs of energy and of regulation. That has changed, especially recently. Now, with the increasing cost of fossil fuels and the decreasing cost of renewables, and increasing legislation and regulation, there has been a change in dynamics. And of course, there is also an increasing understanding of the immediacy around climate challenge and a greater appreciation of the benefits of acting. There is also, generally, a more realistic view, more appreciation of the benefits of an effective mid-term strategy, rather than just looking for a quick payback.”

Maintaining momentum

Another question that has been raised by some observers is whether we should be concerned that the drive for change post-COP26 has been derailed to some extent by issues that have emerged since – political, economic, and of course war in Ukraine.

In response to this, Quinn suggests it is too early to say. “On the positive side there has been action at EU level on renewables and a new focus on energy security, of course. So you could argue that some of these post-COP issues are driving the sustainability agenda even harder. You could argue that they focus the mind somewhat. Whereas we’ve always had this relatively secure supply of energy, with the current geopolitical issues we now face – and the wider impact of climate change underway anyway – we’re going to continue see pressure building for action. So, I think the jury’s out on whether our current situation will be a force for the positive or the negative.”

Put in the simplest terms, we have a critical global imperative – to make the world greener – overlain by a host of other issues and demands. To ensure we respond appropriately on the necessary timescale to that imperative, do we need some sort of centralised driver that works to make all this happen? And if so, is that a role for industry or government?

After a moment to reflect, Quinn says: “I think it needs more government intervention, woven into a network with the industry to create the right long term market environment for investors and innovation. Long term policies and frameworks are required to provide confidence. Organisations and businesses leading the charge should be assessed and recognised in a consistent manner.

So how do you get that to happen? “Definitely a challenge,” he continues, “but perhaps government at senior level, plus key industry, and academic organisations. And it would be important to be inclusive, covering all types of organisations and all sizes.”

This is all a huge challenge, but action – and support for action - is critical. We can point to areas of progress and celebrate them; but leaving large parts of this challenge to the market to figure out what to do and when seems a little risky. Happily, though, we have companies like EQUANS helping to lead the way.