LONGi announces "Net-zero Plant" pledge at UN biodiversity conference

KUNMING, China, Oct. 19, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- LONGi founder and president Li Zhenguo has announced an ambitious pledge to convert the company's Baoshan production base in Yunnan Province into its first "Net-zero Plant" by 2023. The announcement was made at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in Kunming, China and delivery on the pledge will see the beginning of "Net-zero LONGi" and a test field for the company's "Solar for Solar" sustainable development concept.

With the challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss growing, the realization of global sustainable development has reached a crossroads. As the only solar energy company invited to attend the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15), LONGi firmly believes that photovoltaics can change the earth's ecology and contribute to biodiversity protection.

"Climate change has an all-round impact on biodiversity, and unreasonable energy development modes represent a key factor leading to climate change and increasing biodiversity issues," said Li, going on to add that LONGi is a staunch supporter of climate action, in the belief that photovoltaics plus energy storage can be a powerful weapon to mitigate climate change. The company has taken the lead in promoting the reduction in cost and increase in efficiency of photovoltaic products, reducing the cost of photovoltaic power generation by more than 90% over the past decade, providing technical support for the achievement of carbon peak and neutrality goals.

LONGi launched its "Solar for Solar" concept in December 2018, based on manufacturing photovoltaic products driven by photovoltaic power generation, with the objective of extending the role of PV in ecological restoration. The concept had originated in Yunnan Province, where LONGi was the first PV company to establish a base, going on to play a leading role in the development of the province's new energy industry.

In 2020, LONGi successively joined RE100, EV100, EP100 and Scientific Carbon Target (SBTi), becoming the only Chinese solar technology company to join four international initiatives at the same time. The company's Baoshan production base, in effect the first "Net-zero Plant", was also a concrete implementation of the four initiatives, and can be viewed as the starting point for "Net-zero LONGi".

Yunnan is the province with the most abundant green energy in China. Installed capacity  accounts for 85%, with power generation from green energy reaching 90%, laying a very solid foundation for building a net-zero plant.

"We are planning on two years to achieve zero emissions within the operational scope of the LONGi Baoshan base by purchasing green power, energy-saving technological transformation and carbon emission offset measures." Li divided the realization of the "Net- zero Plant" into four steps: Firstly, ensuring that 100% of the Baoshan base utilises green power throughout the year; secondly, completing the production technology transformation of the base's carbon deposition materials to significantly reduce natural gas leakage; thirdly, promoting green production in the base and, finally, purchasing Chinese Certified Emission Reduction (CCER) to offset carbon emissions that cannot be completely eliminated.

Li concluded: "LONGi will always be a defender of and contributor to ecological harmony, sparing no effort to achieve net-zero targets, promote global energy transformation and join hands with partners from all walks of life to jointly realize this vision."

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