Lenovo Sustainability
Combatting Climate Change: Operations
Reducing our impact
Lenovo continually strives to improve the energy efficiency of our internal operations, as well as identify further opportunities to reduce our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Since establishing climate change objectives and targets, Lenovo has implemented more than 170 operational energy-efficiency projects worldwide. All sites continue to strive to identify and implement energy-efficiency projects and evaluate the opportunity to employ the use of renewable energy.
Our energy savings activities include:
Installing low energy lighting, including light and motion sensors
Improving energy efficiency for our HVAC system and chillers
Eliminating or improving usage of transformers and air compressors
Manufacturing area optimization—by integrating and modifying assembly lines
Implementing a low-temperature solder process in our PC manufacturing
Reducing PC on-line testing time
Improving server/data center energy efficiency
Consolidating operations
Reducing the number of company operated vehicles
Participating in Earth Hour
Achieving LEED Gold certification for our new headquarters in Beijing, China, which includes using solar energy to provide hot water
LEED Gold Existing Buildings Operations and Maintenance certification for Morrisville, NC buildings
Energy Management System - ISO 50001
Lenovo is ISO 50001 - Energy Management System certified in all European Union (EU) locations. In FY 2017/18, we expanded this energy management system (EMS) to our Beijing headquarters. Furthermore, since FY 2019/2020 Energy Management System is certified also in Russia and United Arab Emirates. This international standard recognizes organizations that use energy efficiently to help conserve resources and tackle climate change.
Having a first-rate EMS in place will further improve our energy performance. It also leads to better energy efficiency, lower use, and consumption – leading ultimately to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and other related environmental impacts. Additionally, it will increase our employees' awareness of responsible energy behavior.
Click here to see our ISO 50001 certificates.
Renewable Energy
Lenovo is committed to increasing its use of renewable energy and has set a target of achieving 30MW of owned or leased renewable energy generation capacity globally by 2020.
Lenovo’s renewable energy installations include solar hot water generation facilities in Beijing and Huiyang and solar electric generation plants in Shanghai and Hefei. The current solar capacity of all these projects is over 6 MW.
During FY 2018/19 we either initiated, discussed or approved solar projects in our facilities in Morrisville and Whitsett, NC, USA; and Wuhan, China. These projects represent almost 6 MW of potential solar electric generation capacity.
Hot water solar system in Beijing
Rooftop solar panels in Shanghai
Photovoltaic panels in Hefei, China
Solar panel installation at Lenovo Whitsett, North Carolina facility — March 2019.
Also in FY 2018/19, Lenovo was again recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a Top 30 Tech & Telecom Green Power Partner for its purchase of renewable energy. Please click here for more information: https://www.epa.gov/greenpower/green-power-partnership-top-30-techtelecom-0.
Renewable Energy Commodities
Where the use of renewable energy is not technically or economically feasible, Lenovo purchases renewable energy commodities, such as Renewable Energy Credits (REC), International Renewable Energy Credits (I-REC), Guarantees of Origin (GO) and carbon offsets.
During FY 2018/19 Lenovo purchased renewable commodities that supported 100 percent renewable energy projects in Brazil (wind), China (wind), India (wind), Mexico (solar), Europe (wind) and the United States (wind). To view the certificate for RECs, I-RECs, GOs and carbon offsets retired by Lenovo in 2019, visit https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/sustainability-resources and follow the links from there.
Missouri, U.S.A.
Europe
Any renewable energy instruments purchased by Lenovo must demonstrate that the carbon reductions are real, additional, permanent, verifiable, and certified to recognizable industry standards (e.g. Green-e, Verified Carbon Standard, and I-REC).
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognizes Lenovo for green power purchasing. Click here for more information.
Sichuan Province, China
Emissions Trading System
Lenovo was selected for a pilot emission trading system in China. It was determined by the Beijing Municipal authority in 2013 that Lenovo Beijing is a significant energy consumption enterprise since we consumed more than 5,000 MT coal-equivalent electricity (CO2 emissions over 10,000 MT/year) and as such must meet an emissions trading requirement for our Beijing sites.
Our server plant in Shenzhen is also listed as a significant carbon emission enterprise but released emissions do not exceed allocated allowance so reductions are not required. Lenovo is closely monitoring other provinces where this pilot program has been imposed since our sites in Shanghai, Huiyang, Xiamen, Chengdu and Wuhan could be impacted in the future.
The newly implemented China national ETS covers high energy consumption industries such as power, cement and steel. Because Lenovo is classified as an IT industry, the China national ETS requirements have not been imposed on our sites in China at this time. This is the fifth year for Lenovo to be a part of this scheme and since our business is developing constantly, we are expecting a need to purchase allowances. The above-implemented energy efficiency projects will help us meet the emissions reductions requirements.
