Industrials

Digitizing Decarbonization in Metals & Mining Organizations

September 29, 2021

SINAI

Ernst & Young’s Metals & Mining Business Risks and Opportunities Report highlights that Digital & Data Optimization and Carbon Emission Reductions represent 2 of the top 4 risks for companies in the sector. Yet, these are connected challenges. Navigating carbon-related risks in complex Metals & Mining operations, processes, and value chains, requires resolving the digital divide. Winners in an economy transitioning to lower carbon emissions will be agile in their data practices, able to drive actionable insights, measure and manage carbon risks and accelerate opportunity creation that creates economic value for the enterprise. 


An enterprise decarbonization software platform enables organizations to leapfrog both industry challenges by uniquely addressing the needs of companies in the Metals and Mining sector. Decarbonization software both digitizes the performance tracking and reporting of carbon emissions, and also drives value creation by leveraging business intelligence to unlock emissions reductions opportunities and manage risk. This new class of technology addresses 3 core value dimensions of managing a carbon agenda that are uniquely important in the Metals & Mining sector:

1. Simplify performance tracking and reporting 

Key Software Features: 

  • Flexible reporting -  Most metals and mining organizations report emissions under multiple frameworks in support of ESG performance, climate reporting, and regulatory requirements. Decarbonization software platforms offer flexibility to meet the needs of various calculations and methodologies in order to save time and enhance accuracy. 
  • Value Chain Engagement - Supply chain emissions remain challenging for Metals & Mining operators. Collaboration is necessary to accommodate data inputs across complex internal and external value chains.

2. Decarbonization opportunity creation 

Key Software Features: 

  • Process-Level GHG emissions tracking - Metals & Mining is driven by operational complexity that requires high levels of data resolution to uncover executable opportunities. Carbon inventories conducted solely for reporting purposes often lack sufficient detail to identify actual GHG abatement potential. Decarbonization platforms provide a detailed perspective on the sources of emissions across operations and the processes that drive them in order to make insight more specific and actionable. 
  • Forecasting - Opportunity creation requires that emissions sources and processes not only be quantified historically, but also need to be transposed into a forecast in order to accurately identify ex-ante carbon reduction potential. 
  • Cloud-Based - Dispersed operations, geographic diversity and multi-stakeholder processes make opportunity creation dependent on systematic collection of data in a single-source. Cloud-based computing helps break down data-silos across geographies, sites and functional groups, ensuring that technical data is accurate, and providing up-to-date insights.

3. Capital-efficient opportunities and decarbonization pathways 

Key Software Features: 

  • Marginal Abatement & Levelized Carbon Abatement Cost Curves - Wide comparability of carbon reducing projects that vary in technology, financial and environmental impact can strain decision making and budgeting processes. Marginal Abatement Cost Curves (MACC) and Levelized Cost of Carbon Abatement Curves enable carbon related initiatives to inform capital planning processes with confidence. 
  • Emissions pathways - Hitting carbon targets require an understanding of emissions pathways that synthesizes a variety of emissions scenarios and incorporate financial and environmental impact over time. 
  • Internal Carbon Pricing - Comprehensive internal carbon pricing can ensure that all capital planning incorporates potential carbon related risks and opportunities.

SINAI’s inter-dependent modules allow corporations to onboard at any moment in their carbon journey and provide value at every step. For more information on how SINAI simplifies decarbonization and reporting in the Metals & Mining sector, request a demo.

SINAI Decarbonization Platform

Inventories
Measure, consolidate and report on company impact
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Baselines    
Project future emissions and explore business scenarios
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Low-Carbon Scenarios
Model emissions reduction
opportunities
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Carbon
Pricing
Quantify targets, emissions gaps, prices, & budgets
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Value Chain Management
Work with your
supply chain to decarbonize
products
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