On the path towards carbon-neutrality
Environmental and climate protection are core tasks for every company – especially for state-owned companies. We are reducing our energy consumption and focusing on climate-friendly e-mobility.
Berlin's climate targets are also our climate targets
Germany has set itself the goal of being carbon-neutral by 2045 at the latest. The state of Berlin is pursuing this goal and has underpinned it with interim targets, among other things: For example, CO2 emissions in the capital are to be reduced by 70% by 2030 compared to the base year 1990. As a state-owned company, we feel particularly committed to these targets.
To reduce our energy consumption and our carbon emissions, we have implemented several actions:
We’re getting serious: Climate Protection Plan 2024
At present, we are not yet a greenhouse gas-neutral company. But that is what we aim to become: by 2045, we aim to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions to zero.
This means we are reducing both direct emissions from our business operations (Scope 1) and indirect emissions from purchased energy (Scope 2).
So-called grid losses – that is, the electricity lost during distribution via our grid for technical reasons – account for by far the largest share of our GHG emissions: 96 per cent.
The requirements of grid regulation do not allow us to source the electricity we purchase for this purpose via tender exclusively from renewable sources. Instead, we have to purchase so-called ‘grey electricity’, the composition of which corresponds, for accounting purposes, to the electricity mix available in Germany. This means that some of this electricity is generated using coal or natural gas.
However, this ‘partly’ will become increasingly smaller over the coming years: in 2024, 3 per cent more electricity was generated from renewable energy sources in Germany than in the previous year, totalling 59 per cent. With the increased construction of wind and solar power plants, this trend is likely to continue in the coming years.
In addition, our climate protection strategy includes the following measures:
- Switching from and replacing the insulating gas SF6 with more climate-friendly alternatives,
- further electrification of our vehicle fleet, thermal insulation and smart heating control in our buildings,
- use of district heating and heat pumps,
- certified energy management to ensure a systematic process for identifying energy-saving potential,
- procurement of green electricity for the operation of service buildings, substations and network nodes.
Environment protection at Stromnetz Berlin
Supporting biodiversity at our facilities
Berlin is a green city. We want to contribute to this by planting wild perennials, creating sandariums or building and installing nesting aids at suitable sites. These provide shelter for insects and serve as a source of food for them. The first flowering meadow was planted in Treptow-Köpenick in 2023. Further sites are being planned.
Electric vehicles in the fleet
It stands to reason that an electricity network operator’s vehicle fleet would consist of electric vehicles. In recent years, we have largely switched our cars to environmentally friendly powertrains.
We have also installed charging infrastructure for our electric vehicles at almost all our sites. We are so proud of some of these facilities that we are happy to show them to our customers, for example during special guided tours at our site in Treptow-Köpenick.
Use of public transport and cycling
Of course, we make sure to only travel as many kilometres by car as is absolutely necessary. After all, when it comes to the climate, the best kilowatt-hour is still the one that isn’t used in the first place. That is why Stromnetz Berlin supports its employees with a subsidy for public transport or the Deutschlandticket (Jobticket), as well as with ‘Jobrad’ schemes for leasing bicycles. Staff can charge the batteries of their e-bikes at several of our sites.