Glencore PLC (LSE:GLEN) said its direct carbon dioxide emissions increased last year.
Its Scope 1 carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions - those made by the company directly - grew to 15.0mln tonnes (Mt) from 14.8Mt in 2020, while its Scope 2 location-based emissions rose to 10.8Mt from 9.4Mt.
Only Scope 3 emissions, which includes those from suppliers and not those associated with the company itself, declined from the previous year to 254Mt from 271Mt, according to the mining and commodity trading company’s 2021 sustainability report.
The FTSE 100 miner previously announced it aims to achieve net-zero total emissions by 2050. Its targets, revised last year, are for a 15% reduction by 2026 and a 50% reduction by 2035 both versus 2019 levels.
Glencore, which typically generates about 10-15% of its underlying earnings through coal, completed the acquisition of the Cerrejón thermal coal mine in early 2022 from joint venture partners BHP Group PLC and Anglo American PLC (LSE:AAL).
READ: Glencore to take full control of Cerrejón mine as JV partners flee thermal coal
“Our board continues to believe that our responsible stewardship model for our coal assets is the correct one for all stakeholders,” said chairman Kalidas Madhavpeddi.
“It is not just that simply passing carbon-intensive assets to others will not get the world to net zero - it is likely to be less effective in doing so while increasing other ESG risks and reducing transparency.
“Our board believes that the ESG responsibilities for these assets are best managed by Glencore as a responsible operator rather than leaving these to be someone else's problem."