Hindalco Industries Limited, the metals flagship of the Aditya Birla Group, has been ranked the world’s most sustainable aluminium company for the fifth consecutive year.

In the 2024 edition of the S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) rankings, Hindalco was the only aluminium company to secure the top position. It got a total score of 87 points (as of 30 October 2024), improving its tally by 9 points from 2023. It was 22 points ahead of its closest peer, a statement from the company said.

The DJSI World Index comprises the top 10 per cent of the largest 2,500 companies by market capitalisation in the S&P Global Broad Market Index based on long-term economic and ESG factors.

Raising ESG standards

Satish Pai, Managing Director, Hindalco Industries Ltd, said, “We have been able to significantly boost our score because of our consistent efforts to raise our environmental, social, and governance standards. This includes committed efforts to maintain biodiversity, water positivity, zero waste to landfill, and ultimately achieving net-zero emissions.”

The statement said Hindalco achieved the 100th percentile in most aspects of the three dimensions of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) aspects. 

This included climate strategy, environment and social reporting, and water-related risks, as well as operational eco-efficiency parameters such as waste management and resource consumption, cybersecurity, community engagement, and employee development. 

The company’s sustainability ranking showed continuous improvement in all parameters, it said, adding that it is leading in climate action and emission reduction programmes. It has taken initiatives such as setting up a 100 MW round-the-clock carbon-free power project for its Odisha smelter, which also earned the prestigious “Energy Transition Changemaker” award at COP28.

Recycled 85% of operational waste

It achieved a remarkable 19.54 per cent reduction in specific GHG emissions compared to its FY 2011-12 baseline. It is making further investments to support eco-friendly smelter expansions as a part of its vision to source 30 per cent of its energy from renewables by 2030, the release said.

Hindalco recycled 85 per cent of its operational waste in FY24, and three of its units received zero-waste-to-landfill certification in line with the company’s goal to achieve zero-waste-to-landfill by 2030.

In the social category, the company retained its top position by scoring 89 per cent, which is 26 percentage points ahead of its closest peer. As part of its social commitment, the company invested ₹154 crore in community programmes in 2023-24, impacting more than 2.5 million lives.

In terms of governance, the company scored an impressive 84 per cent, which is 12 percentage points higher than its nearest competitor. S&P Global’s Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) is the world’s leading provider of ratings that evaluate publicly listed companies against environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. 

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