Samsung Electronics Co. has unveiled its first-ever disclosure of Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions, which represent the indirect emissions, and were found to be 21 times higher than its Scope 1 emissions, which refer to direct greenhouse gas emissions.

According to industry sources on Wednesday, Samsung Electronics recently published its 2023 sustainability report, which contains this information.

The indirect greenhouse gas emissions (Scope 3) emitted by Samsung Electronics last year amounted to a total of 124.72 million tons. In terms of greenhouse gas emission criteria, Scope 1 refers to the direct emissions produced by companies, while Scope 2 refers to the indirect emissions generated when companies purchase and use electricity.

In addition, Scope 3, which is an expanded concept, includes the indirect greenhouse gas emissions that occur throughout a company’s value chain. It encompasses emissions generated by suppliers, customers, transportation and waste management, among others.

The Scope 3 emissions disclosed by Samsung Electronics for the first time in this report were 124.72 million tons. The figure was 21 times higher than Samsung Electronics’ Scope 1 emissions. It also exceeds the combined emissions of Scope 1, which was 5.97 million tons, and Scope 2, which was 9.08 million tons, by more than 8 times.

Among the specific categories of Scope 3 emissions, greenhouse gases generated during the consumer usage stage were the highest at 101.24 million tons. In the product manufacturing stage, emissions from purchased goods and services were 14.6 million tons. Other disclosed emissions related to company activities include upstream transportation and distribution with 3.97 million ton emissions, capital goods with 1.51 million tons, disposal of sold products with 1.21 million tons, fuel and energy activities with 0.9 million tons, employee commuting with 0.3 million tons, and business trips by employees with 0.09 million tons.

Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics also announced plans to expand the application of self-developed reusable filters with advanced technology to all its affiliate and partner factories. These filters can simultaneously remove fine dust and harmful gases and can be used for up to 20 years with simple water cleaning.

Previously, when constructing an air purification system, reuse was difficult, and filters needed to be replaced every six months to one year.

However, the new filter structure incorporates materials with water-resistant properties such as cuprous oxide and titanium dioxide, ensuring that the performance is maintained even with water cleaning. Assuming 10 reuses through water cleaning, it can be used for up to 20 years, increasing the lifespan by about 40 times compared to conventional high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters.

Samsung Electronics plans to gradually apply this technology to Samsung Electronics’ other facilities by 2030 and then expand it to affiliate and partner companies starting from 2030.

By Choi Seung-jin, Oh Chan-jong, and Chang Iou-chung

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