Fuel substitution to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Chile
Established in 1936, the Graneros instant coffee and infant cereal factory used mainly coal (11 400 tonnes/year) and other fossil fuels to generate process heat and steam. In 2003, Nestlé switched to natural gas to achieve significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide,methane and nitrous oxide. The reduction in CO 2 emissions of close to 20 000 tonnes/ year was validated in July 2005 by the United Nations, according to its Framework Convention on Climate Change Clean Development Mechanism. Through this convention, Nestlé was granted carbon credits that were subsequently sold to a Japanese electrical company.
In addition, the baseline methodology developed for Nestlé Chile was officially
approved by the UNFCCC for use by other industrial companies to apply for carbon credits. One-third of our factories in Latin America are already using natural gas, and increasing this ratio is a challenge, in particular, to gas availability. “Nestlé ’s sale of CO 2 Emission Reductions to the Japanese Company, Electric Power Development,within the framework of the Kyoto Protocol and following the conversion to natural gas at its Graneros plant, reflects Nestlé ’s commitment to the environment and the community at large. It also shows the company ’s adherence to long-term sustainable economic development.
Nestlé was the first industrial-sector company to make use of this tool in Chile, which undoubtedly has become an incentive and example for other companies from various other sectors in adopting cleaner technologies.It also enabled our country to join the carbon trading market, with a new, but very promising, non-traditional export product.” Hugo Lavados, ProChile Director.
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