A Future Without Fossil Fuels Is Within Reach - Koehler Group Publishes Third Sustainability Report
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- Ambitious sustainability goals set for 2030
- Koehler Group is blazing a trail in the implementation of the energy transformation
- Green energy already covers around 60% of the group’s heating needs and 70% of electricity demand in its paper production
The Koehler Group, a leading supplier of premium specialty paper and pioneering planner and operator of renewable energy generation plants, has released its third sustainability report. In the report, the family-owned company discloses further details of its sustainability strategy, how it is being implemented, and what progress has already been achieved. What’s more, the paper manufacturer, whose history stretches back more than 215 years, has set 38 ambitious goals in different areas of action and is revealing them for the first time in the report.
The Koehler Group's corporate strategy is based on the fundamental principle of sustainability
Sustainability is a basic guiding principle for the way the Koehler Group does business, a cornerstone of the company’s strategy, and an integral part of its organization. As a family-owned company, the Koehler Group firmly believes that it too has a responsibility to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals through its business activities. With the publication of the 2030 Sustainability Strategy in 2022, the Koehler Group set out the company’s roadmap to sustainable growth. In the new sustainability report, the Koehler Group reveals specific goals in six areas of action within its sustainability strategy for the first time. The family-owned company will make regular, transparent announcements to communicate its progress in achieving the 38 goals by 2030.
The Koehler Group is already implementing numerous projects that will allow it to achieve the ambitious goals it has set itself. Kai Furler, CEO of the Koehler Group, emphasized: “Sustainability has long been a key concern for us and will continue to be so. A holistic approach allows us to continually improve our ecological and economic impact, as well as our contribution to society.”
Pioneer in the energy transformation – ambitious 2030 Koehler Promise
As part of its climate strategy, the Koehler Group has committed to reducing direct fossil greenhouse gas emissions under scope 1 by 80% by 2030, a goal that can only be achieved by using energy that doesn’t come from fossil fuel sources. In 2023, around 60% of the Koehler Group’s heating requirements and around 70% of electricity requirements for paper production were already met using renewable energy sources. That means the major goals the company has set itself are within reach. The family-owned company wants to generate more renewable energy using its own plants than required for its paper production operations by 2030. Thekla Walker, Minister for the Environment, Climate, and Energy of the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg, noted on a visit to the Koehler Group headquarters in early 2024 that while other companies are still planning their energy transformation, the Koehler Group is already well underway in putting its own into practice.
In this context, Kai Furler commented: “We are proud to say that we already cover a significant proportion of our steam and electricity needs from renewable sources. Many industrial companies are still almost fully reliant on natural gas. We started transforming our energy supply more than 12 years ago, which is now paying off.” The Koehler Group is currently investing more than 70 million euros in decarbonizing its own coal power plant at its headquarters – a mammoth project which will not pay off for a number of years, but will ultimately save 150,000 metric tons of direct fossil CO2 emissions per year.
Paper instead of plastic – sustainable and innovative products at the forefront
As a family enterprise, the Koehler Group wants to contribute to the sustainable development of society and the environment through its business operations. The development of innovative and sustainable products focusing on customer benefits is at the forefront as a result. This includes, for example, paper that helps customers achieve their own sustainability goals. Flexible plastic packaging has been the go-to solution for decades. It has been adapted and optimized on numerous occasions. However, its recycling rate is rather disappointing and in practice it is rarely recycled and reused. Koehler Paper believes that flexible packaging paper has real potential to replace plastic film in packaging. Yet paper packaging can offer enormous benefits. Paper is a product that is based on renewable raw materials and is actually recycled in practice. Unlike plastic, paper can be recycled over and over again. Koehler has also developed barrier functions that make paper resistant to grease, for example. In some respects, this high-tech paper can do more than plastic.
Numerous projects from the six areas of action “Successful, Future-Proof Products and Services,” “Renewable Raw Materials and Responsible Sources,” “Resource Efficiency,” “A Visionary Approach to Climate Action,” “People, the Key to Success,” and “Growing the Company’s Value” are helping the group to achieve its 38 goals by 2030.
Mit freundlichen Grüßen / Best regards
Alexander M. Stöckle Corporate Director Marketing & Communications Press Spokesperson
Koehler Holding SE & Co. KG
Tel: +49 7802 81-4749 Fax: +49 7802 81-5749 mailto:alexander.stoeckle@koehler.com