Knowledge A Detailed Explanation of the Importance and Benefits of Using IT for Carbon Neutrality（1/4）～Challenges Faced by Companies Implementing Carbon-Neutral Initiative～

Global companies often encounter the following challenges when calculating and disclosing CO2 emissions across their entire supply chains:

To calculate CO2 emissions throughout the supply chain, companies must organize a massive amount of data and plan company-wide initiatives. However, it is often unclear where to start or which step should be prioritized, causing many companies to stumble during the initial planning stage.

Collecting data for Scope 3 (indirect emissions) tends to be more challenging than for Scope 1 and 2 (direct emissions) because it requires the cooperation of business partners and suppliers.

Accurately estimating the personnel, systems, and time needed for data collection and management is also difficult, often leading to inadequate preparation. Furthermore, insufficient training and unclear guidelines can impede the calculation process.

A major challenge at overseas branches is the shortage of local staff with the necessary knowledge and skills for calculating CO2 emissions. Additionally, obtaining cooperation from local suppliers is often difficult, leading many companies to only achieve partial calculations. In some cases, the collected data may contain gaps or errors. When such issues occur across the supply chain, proper verification becomes extremely challenging.

Calculating CO2 emissions requires familiarity with data analysis tools and calculation models. Lacking that understanding, there is a risk that errors may go undetected and inaccurate figures might be reported.

Global companies must contend with varying emission factors and calculation standards from country to country. As a result, headquarters must integrate and oversee multiple calculation methodologies, a process that is both time-consuming and burdensome.

Furthermore, because overseas offices may not be as strongly governed by the headquarters, managing IT usage and standardizing operational flows becomes more difficult. This can lead to inconsistencies in systems and data management across different locations.