Media Coverage

Swire Properties is among a group of property companies expressing concerns about a proposed change to accounting rules under the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), set to be launched by the end of 2023. The proposed change would only allow real estate firms to report Scope 2 electricity emissions reductions in the places where they consume energy. This means that the firms’ electricity emission reductions achieved through market-based carbon reduction programmes would not be recognised. The property companies argue that this change would make it extremely difficult for the building and construction sectors in most of Asia to meet their net-zero targets.

Raymond Yau, General Manager, Technical Services and Sustainable Development, Swire Properties, believes that the SBTi should continue to give firms the option of market-based reporting. He highlights that renewable energy procurement is key to developing renewable energy supply in regions like Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland that lack "a clear and sufficiently aggressive" near-term grid decarbonisation strategy. Yau also added that the proposed new rules may result in reduced investment in renewable energy by real estate firms in Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland, as there would be limited incentives to pursue market-based renewable energy arrangements. This, in turn, could discourage these firms from setting science-based targets, as it would be challenging to convince their boards of the feasibility of the required decarbonisation pathway based solely on energy efficiency.