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Efforts to reduce CO2 emission during manufacture
The increase in the energy consumed exceeded the reduction in the energy consumed at our group in Japan from fiscal 2003 to 2007 because of a rapid rise in production, and consequent increase in CO2 emission. In fiscal 2008, many factories emitted less CO2 because of manufacturing cutbacks due to the economic crisis and the implementation of measures to reduce the consumption of energy, such as switching from using fossil fuels to LNG, as shown in the following table. However, the total CO2 emission at our group in Japan in fiscal 2008 was 85,354t, which was an increase of 4,076t (about 5%) compared to that in fiscal 2007 because of full-scale production at Hitachinaka Works, which came online in 2007, commencement of operations at Hitachinaka-Rinko Works, and a significant increase in the CO2 emission coefficient for electricity because of the lowering of the percentage of electricity generated at nuclear power stations. On the other hand, considering CO2 emissions per sales, the figure for fiscal 2008 was 13.5 tons of CO2 per 100 million yen, which was a further reduction of 0.8 tons of CO2 per 100 million yen(6%) compared to the figure for fiscal 2007 because of the effect of measures to reduce the consumption of energy despite the negative impact caused by the significant rise in the CO2 emission coefficient for electricity. Comparing with the figures for 1990 - the base year of the Kyoto Protocol, CO2 emissions per sales dropped by 31% as a result of efforts to consume less energy, but total emissions rose by 27% because of the rise in production.
| Major energy saving example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Major energy saving measure | CO2 emission Reduction |
| 1) Introduction of highly efficient devices | Amorphous transformers, highly efficient metal halide lamps, adjustment of the power factor of low-tension circuits, inverter-type hydraulic oil pumps | 158t of CO2 per year |
| 2) Switching the type of energy resource used | Switching from the use of type-A diesel and LPG to LNG | 657t of CO2 per year |
| 3) Changing control methods | Automatic power on / power off control of equipment, optimal operation of controllers, control using timers, motion sensors | 139t of CO2 per year |
| 4) Improvements in manufacturing procedures and quality | Separation of welding fume dust collectors, off-line teaching, tandem welding | 64t of CO2 per year |
| 5) Boosting control | Optimized operation of compressors, adjustment of air pressure supplies, reduction of lighting, revision of cooling temperature settings | 513t of CO2 per year |
Changes in total CO2 emissions and CO2 emissions per sales (in Japan)
The group companies outside Japan emitted a total of 44,504t of CO2. The CO2 emissions per sales was 44.3t per 100 million Yen in fiscal 2008. Total emissions increased by 8,678t (about 24%) because of a rise in production. The CO2 emissions per sales also rose by 6.1t (11%) because of a significant increase in the CO2 emission coefficient for electricity outside Japan, despite the efforts of our group companies to save energy.
Changes in total CO2 emissions and CO2 emissions per sales (outside Japan)
Our group will continue to strive to save energy for production. Our group also makes efforts to reduce CO2 emissions throughout the lifecycles of our products that are sold in Japan and outside Japan by means such as designing products to save resources and energy, in accordance with a Hitachi Group concept called emission neutral. The CO2 emission coefficient for electricity is expected to improve in Japan because electricity generation at nuclear power stations will recover.
