SINGAPORE — January 10, 2024 — Seiko Epson Corp. is pleased to announce that, as of December 2023, all electricity used at Epson Group sites around the globe1 comes from renewable sources. This makes Epson the first2 in the domestic manufacturing industry to complete the transition to renewable electricity at all of its sites worldwide, according to the company. The Epson Group consumes approximately 876 GWh3 of electricity per year. By sourcing renewables to meet this demand, Epson expects to reduce its annual carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 400,000 metric tons.
Epson has publicly committed to becoming carbon negative and underground resource4 free in its Environmental Vision 2050. The use of renewable electricity is a key means by which Epson seeks to reach its goal of achieving decarbonization. In line with this, Epson has previously declared, in March 2021, that it would switch to 100-percent renewable electricity to meet the electricity needs at all Epson Group sites1 around the world by 2023. In November 2021, the switch was completed in Japan. The global switch to renewable electricity was completed on schedule in December 2023.
In addition to sourcing renewable electricity, Epson will promote the broader adoption of renewable energy which includes generating more of its own power and supporting the development of new power sources through co-creation5. Epson will reduce the amount of energy associated with production processes and products as well as pursue further advances in resource circulation to attain the goal of becoming carbon negative.
Steps taken to switch to 100 percent renewable electricity use at all Epson Group sites1
- March 2021: Publicly committed to switching to 100 percent renewable electricity at all sites;
- April 2021: Switch completed at all sites in its local area of Nagano Prefecture, Japan;
- November 2021: Switch completed at all sites in Japan; and
- December 2023: Switch completed at all global sites.
Global President Yasunori Ogawa said: “For the past eight decades, Epson has demonstrated a proactive approach to environmental action. We have maintained the founder’s commitment to preserving the cleanliness of nearby Lake Suwa and became the world’s first company to eliminate CFCs from our manufacturing processes. Now we have successfully completed the switch to 100% renewable electricity at all Epson Group sites in just two years and ten months since declaring our commitment to doing so in 2021. This will not only help us achieve our own goals but also help to facilitate a broader adoption of renewable electricity in the wider society. Realizing social sustainability is a goal fraught with difficulties but we will act with determination to address the hurdles with a spirit of creativity and challenge.”
Epson believes that its philosophy of efficient, compact and precise innovation enriches lives and helps create a better world. We will continue to engage in practices that are aligned with this purpose, thereby advancing toward the aspirational goal of achieving sustainability and uplifting communities alongside customers and partners.
1 Excludes some sales sites and leased properties where the amount of electricity consumed cannot be determined
2 Among Japanese companies that have joined the RE100. Current as of January 9, 2024, per Epson research.
3 Results for the 2022 fiscal year ended March 2023. Includes co-generation system (CGS) electricity and privately generated electricity.
4 Free of non-renewable resources such as oil and metals
5 A project to expand the sourcing of renewable electricity in Nagano Prefecture
Posted: January 10, 2024
Source: Seiko Epson Corporation
