Half see the fragmentation of their internal data as one of the biggest obstacles to reducing their emissions

MADRID, 19 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Only a third (32%) of Spanish companies include decarbonisation among their top five priorities for the next three years and 50% see the fragmentation of their internal data as one of the five biggest obstacles in their efforts to reduce their emissions greenhouse effect.

This is according to a new report on decarbonization published by the independent research company Coleman Parkes Research and produced by Atos and Amazon Web Services (AWS), which surveyed 4,000 business leaders from three sectors (manufacturing, energy and service companies). utilities and financial services) in four European countries (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom).

In the case of Spanish companies, they are slightly above the average in their decarbonisation initiatives, in relation, for example, to the calculation of their carbon footprint and the measurement of scope 2 emissions.

However, the report argues that the confidence these companies have in their decarbonisation measures is not matched by the actions they are taking to set emission reduction targets, validate those targets and measure emissions, which is the case for others as well. countries analyzed.

82% of Spanish companies are measuring their carbon footprint in some way, 96% have set emission reduction targets and 80% have ensured that these have a scientific basis.

But according to Atos and AWS, efforts to understand, measure, report and reduce carbon dioxide emissions are not very advanced. Six out of ten companies have been working on reducing emissions for four years or less and only 14% have set science-based targets for all three types of emissions (scope 1, 2 and 3). "Much remains to be done to close the gap between setting a goal and measuring results," the report says.

When it comes to reducing the carbon footprint, one of the main obstacles for companies (mentioned by 50%) is that the internal data available to them is fragmented, which makes it difficult to properly measure emissions. In addition, 57% state that having access to accurate, reliable, centralized, and real-time data is one of the three most useful tools for reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

The study also examines the relationship between the digitization of companies and the collection and analysis of emissions data. Of those Spanish companies that believe that their decarbonisation strategies are being very successful, 62% have digitized all or practically all of their sustainability initiatives.

Three quarters of those surveyed agree that the utilities offered by the cloud are key to accelerating the reduction of emissions and believe that their reports on the impact on the environment would improve if they had a tool to measure emissions (something they mention 77%).

The cloud also ranks high on the list of technologies that Spanish companies consider essential to reduce their carbon footprint and, in fact, 75% are already working with a cloud service provider. Among those who believe that their decarbonization process is being successful, 79% are collaborating with this type of supplier, while the percentage drops to 68% among companies that recognize that their decarbonization is not going so well.

In this sense, 80% of those surveyed maintain that adopting the latest cloud technologies will contribute to accelerating the progress of Spanish companies towards the goal of net zero emissions by 2050, proposed in the Paris Agreement, in two years or more. to mitigate the consequences of global warming. Despite this, a fifth of Spanish companies do not use the cloud.

In the general results of the study, including the four countries analysed, it can be seen that the biggest barrier faced by companies in reducing emissions is the impact that increased costs and economic uncertainty have on their budgets (55% ).

They also see as an obstacle that their internal data is fragmented and out of date (49%), the difficulty in finding the right external support (42%), changes in industry standards regarding emissions reduction (41%) and the difficulties to modernize the factories (40%).

In relation to this report, the head of Technology at AWS Iberia, Merce Mariño, has indicated that setting an emissions reduction target "is only the beginning of any company's journey towards carbon reduction."

This work "must be complemented with solid scientific measurement systems" such as those offered by AWS or its partner Atos, as stated to Europa Press. As an example, Mariño cited the AWS Carbon Footprint tool, to measure emissions, and the Good Architecture Framework, which helps clients improve their workloads in the cloud and has a specific sustainability pillar.

The global head of the AWS Business Group at Atos, Guillem Pelissier, has highlighted the importance of having a carbon emissions measurement tool that is "reliable and consistent", such as the Atos MyCO2Compass carbon calculator, which "automates the calculation of emissions and carbon footprint collection, improves reporting and enables analysis and visualization of data across the entire value chain."

In addition, Pelissier has stated that the possibilities offered by cloud-enabled technologies, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, the Internet of Things and data analytics, to develop solutions for more efficient and decarbonized operations are " infinite".

For example, in manufacturing, predictive maintenance powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning can help prevent machine malfunctions, "increasing uptime, productivity, and reducing costs and consumption." of energy", as he explained.

Mariño, for his part, has commented that AWS allows its clients to create sustainability solutions that range from monitoring the carbon footprint to energy conservation and waste reduction, gathering, analyzing and managing data related to sustainability.

"Businesses can use data analytics to automatically track emissions from their operations, corporate travel, technology equipment, materials, suppliers or carriers," and "predictive artificial intelligence can increase efficiency in production and transport, among many others, to reduce the carbon footprint", he detailed.