Message from our Chairman and MD

2022 was the year of post-COVID-19 pandemic recovery. However, the resulting economic recession coupled with geopolitical conflicts led to high global inflation. Businesses around the world are faced with various challenges, one of which is climate change – a topic that is receiving global attention. Following the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP27, the urgency of prompt policy implementation and climate adaptation in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was highlighted.

As a leading Oleochemical producer, Global Green Chemicals Public Company Limited (“GGC”) strives to achieve its sustainability vision, which is in line with the United Nations (UN) sustainable development target that covers environmental, social, and governance (economic) dimensions, to build confidence on sustainable business growth, create value, and elevate business standards to be nationally and internationally accepted. In 2022, GGC’s sustainability performance covers the three dimensions as follows:

Environmental Dimension: GGC is committed to becoming a role model business for all three dimensions of the Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Economy Model, improving clean energy use as part of our decarbonization pathway, and reiterating our commitments to The Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). GGC aims to achieve our net zero target by 2050, which will serve as an important milestone for GGC to become an internationally recognized sustainable organization. Our key strategies include:

• Efficiency-driven Reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the value chain through efficient production processes and waste reduction through the utilization of low-carbon technologies and renewable energy. Example projects include energy saving at the Fatty Alcohol Distillation Tower and increasing the efficiency of COD treatment in wastewater treatment system projects.
• Portfolio-driven Development of environmentally friendly products to restructure our business and transition towards becoming a low-carbon business by increasing low-carbon investments and expanding the range of low-carbon products within the product portfolio. GGC, in partnership with KTIS BioEthanol Company Limited and Kaset Thai International Sugar Corporation Public Limited Company, invested in the development of the Nakornsawan Biocomplex to produce fuels and bioenergy using raw materials from domestic agricultural products. This will create value for biochemical products and bioplastics which is consistent with GGC’s business strategy to drive growth in the respective markets.
• Compensation-driven Sequestration and offsetting of carbon to drive the management of GHG emissions and achieving GHG reduction targets through Nature-Based Solutions and Technical-Based Solutions.

With our commitments to implementing the three strategies and our efforts to increase our credibility in sustainability to an internationally recognized level that is comparable to sustainable business leaders, in 2022, GGC set targets to reduce Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 20% by 2030 and achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Our climate change disclosure through the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), an internationally recognized sustainability reporting framework, received large score improvements from a score of C (Awareness Level) to A- (Leadership Level) and placed GGC as a leader in climate change management. This marks another milestone in our development toward becoming a sustainable organization.

Social Dimension: GGC engages with all stakeholder groups throughout the supply chain. We adjusted our corporate social responsibility (CSR) operating model to a model which balances our business activities with socially responsible activities (CSV & SE Model). This enabled GGC to collaborate with local communities to integrate sustainable development principles throughout our supply chain. GGC also partnered with the German International Cooperation Agency (GIZ) to support small local farmers in receiving the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification which is a sustainable supply chain management approach and is in line with our human rights principles.

In addition, in 2022, GGC received the certificate and plaque for the CSR DIW Continuous Award from the Department of Industrial Works, Ministry of Industry, for the 7th consecutive year reflecting our commitment to conduct our business in an environmentally and socially conscious manner. We also received the 2022 Eco Factory plus Social Value (Eco Factory + SV) Award at the Gold Plus level which reflects the balance between environmental, social, and governance (economic) dimensions in our operations.

Governance (Economic) Dimension: GGC aims to become a nationally and internationally recognized sustainable organization by operating our business in line with sustainable development principles. GGC aims to become a leading Oleochemical producer company by building trust among stakeholders through operational excellence, transparency, and fairness to ensure good governance as well as developing a strong corporate culture. GGC’s operational direction, which is in line with international standards, is supported by participation from executives and employees and underpinned by a sustainability management framework that drives GGC’s sustainability efforts.

GGC’s success in sustainably operating our business would not be possible without the collaboration between executives, employees that strive to perform their best, and support from partners and stakeholders throughout the supply chain.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, executives, and employees, gratitude is extended to all stakeholders for their continued support throughout our sustainability journey. Despite future challenges that may arise, GGC will continuously move forward as an important force in driving sustainable business operations, in line with sustainable development principles, to create value for the organization and stakeholders. Most importantly, we will continue our joint efforts to create environmental, social, and governance (economic) benefits for Thailand.