ALTANA Focuses on Environmentally Compatible Management

Environmentally compatible management is a key component of ALTANA's corporate strategy. Our goal is to continuously reduce our energy consumption. We also implement this aim in other environmentally relevant areas, such as waste and drinking water consumption.

The ALTANA Group measures progress in the area of environmental protection with the help of specific key figures. In addition to absolute values, the figures are set in relation to the quantity of finished goods produced. ALTANA sets annual upper limits for energy consumption, water consumption, and waste volumes in relation to the volume of finished goods produced. 

Detailed information on ALTANA’s resource and energy consumption as well as the environmental indicators can be found in the Corporate Report 2023.

Consistent climate strategy

ALTANA is committed to become greenhouse gas-free across all three scopes, and we are making significant strides in this direction. Since 2014, we have reduced greenhouse gas emissions in Scopes 1 and 2 by 70 percent. Additionally, starting in 2025, we will offset all CO₂ equivalents generated in Scopes 1, 2, and selected categories of Scope 3 (categories 4, 6, and 8). This includes greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the combustion of fossil fuels, primarily natural gas, as well as those resulting from chemical reactions in production processes (Scope 1), as well as indirect emissions from energy procurement, primarily electricity and steam (Scope 2). Moreover, from 2025 onwards, offsetting efforts will encompass emissions from essential business trips, company vehicles, and transportation of goods. Our approach aligns with the best practices recommended by SBTi (Science Based Target Initiative) to support decarbonization efforts, contributing to the global target of limiting warming to 1.5°C, as agreed upon at the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris in 2015 and reaffirmed in Glasgow in 2021.

The remaining emissions primarily stem from natural gas use in our production processes, presenting a significant technological challenge. Nevertheless, we are committed to eliminating these emissions.

We are exploring the adoption of new technologies to reduce reliance on natural gas while also planning to implement an internal CO₂ prize. Moreover, ALTANA is consistently linking sustainability targets to the individual target agreements of its managers.

For more information on our initiatives and current performance metrics, please visit the "Consistent climate strategy" section.

Responsible usage of the resource water

Water plays an important role in many of the ALTANA Group’s production processes, and the specialty chemicals group is making various efforts to use this resource sparingly. Water is used in the chemical industry as a raw material, as a cleaning agent, and as a coolant. ALTANA aims to keep its water consumption as low as possible and to use the resource as a cooling medium in closed loop systems. 

In the Corporate Report 2023 ALTANA presents its handling of the resource water in a transparent way. 

Optimization of waste management

ALTANA aims to avoid or reduce wastewater and waste and thus minimize the negative effects on people and the environment, among other things by using suitable raw materials and cleaning agents. 

In recent years, ALTANA’s divisions have been able to reduce waste volumes at numerous sites by means of recycling. In addition, significant amounts of solvents have been saved at several sites through the use of more efficient cleaning agents and the revision of cleaning regulations.

Detailed information on waste management in the ALTANA Group can be found in the Corporate Report 2023.