Supporting Climate Change Mitigation

Hungarian Gas Storage Ltd goes Carbon Neutral in 2020

Across all industries, climate change is one of the critical challenges that the private sector must face. Hungarian Gas Storage Ltd has now taken bold steps towards climate change mitigation: alongside switching to 100% renewable energy for their power supply, Hungary’s largest gas storage provider now also supports two certified climate protection projects to compensate for the unavoidable emissions from their business activities. In addition to this, the company supports a national environmental protection and afforestation programme in Hungary to have a local impact. Supported by German climate protection solution provider and project developer First Climate, Hungarian Gas Storage Ltd is now a carbon neutral company.

At Hungarian Gas Storage Ltd, we are taking our responsibility for climate protection seriously. We are committed to contributing to climate change mitigation and to helping achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement which aims to limit global warming to 1.5°C.

For achieving this goal, the company has already started a green office programme for reduced waste and water consumption, and increased energy efficiency. As of 2020 the company is also taking their climate protection commitment one step further. It has switched their electric power consumption to 100% renewable energy. Furthermore, supported by their climate protection partner First Climate, the company is now also compensating for their remaining carbon footprint through carbon offsetting.

Carbon neutral through offsetting

Carbon offsetting is based on the principal of a global climate equilibrium; when it comes to climate change, it doesn’t matter where in the world emissions are being produced and where they are avoided. Therefore, it is possible to compensate for unavoidable emissions that are produced in one location by enabling additional emission reduction projects in another location. This mechanism, which is rooted in the Kyoto Protocol, has firmly established itself and has proven its worth over the past 20 years as a central component of voluntary, non-state regulated climate protection.

Supporting environmental protection in Hungary

In addition to their carbon offsetting program, Hungarian Gas Storage Ltd has also chosen to support an environmental protection and afforestation initiative in Hungary:

ERDŐMENTŐK ALAPÍTVÁNY initiative organizes and supervises nature conservation operations, which are carried out by volunteers. The association puts a special focus on involving children from difficult social backgrounds and children with disabilities in their work. In joint projects, tens of thousands of new trees are planted in Hungary every year.

Through our support for climate protection and afforestation projects on both a national and international level, we can effectively contribute to the fight against climate change and help support local sustainable development on the ground. Together with our endeavors to reduce our carbon footprint, we make sure that Hungarian Gas Storage’s climate strategy is in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Support for a renewable energy project in India

For the compensation of emissions resulting from their operations, Hungarian Gas Storage Ltd has decided to support a certified emission reduction project in India – the Kinnaur Hydropower Project. This run-of-river hydropower project is located in the mountainous region of Himachal Pradesh and feeds clean electricity into the regional grid.

The project is certified by the reputable and internationally recognized Verified Carbon Standard. The emission reductions achieved are regularly checked and verified by third-party auditors. Without the revenue support provided by carbon offsetting, this project would not be financially viable and would therefore have not been implemented.