Pudong launches sustainable development alliance

Shanghai's Pudong New Area has launched the Pudong Sustainable Development (ESG) Alliance, a major initiative to enhance corporate sustainability across the city.

The move aligns with the city's new three-year action plan (2024-2026), aimed at helping foreign-invested companies meet global ESG standards. This marks the first regional initiative of its kind in China, responding to growing regulatory pressure from international markets, particularly the European Union.

At the Pudong Headquarters Economy Conference held last week, the alliance revealed its 202 members, including 176 domestic and foreign-headquartered companies. Among them, 55 firms hold an MSCI ESG rating of BB or higher, and 17 are featured on the Fortune Impact Initiative list.

The alliance will be chaired by Holly Lei, senior vice president of Covestro, with 16 co-chairs from leading companies, including Honeywell, Rockwell Automation, Juneyao Airlines, and Baidu. Their collective expertise will help shape policies, improve transparency, and foster innovation, with the aim of enhancing ESG performance across Pudong's industrial supply chains.

In support of these efforts, the Shanghai Service Industries Development & Research Foundation has introduced a Sustainable Development (ESG) Special Fund to accelerate ESG initiatives in Pudong.

The event also highlighted 17 pioneering ESG projects from companies in Pudong. Notable examples include Covestro's strategy to achieve carbon neutrality through a circular economy and Bayer's work in regenerative agriculture.

Apple has committed to achieving carbon neutrality across its entire supply chain by 2030, requiring all direct suppliers to use 100 percent renewable energy.

Additionally, 16 Innovation Excellence Awards were presented to companies excelling in areas such as green technology, energy management, digital innovation, sustainable finance, and social responsibility.

Among the winners, Mahle's innovative R290 refrigerant technology for electric vehicles could reduce hydrofluorocarbon emissions by 90 percent in China's auto industry by 2060.

Envision Digital was recognized for helping Boehringer Ingelheim certify China's first carbon-neutral pharmaceutical plant.

Suzano made history by becoming the first non-financial company from the Americas to raise 1.2 billion yuan (US$165 million) through Panda Bonds in China, highlighting the growing importance of sustainable finance.

By the end of 2023, Pudong was home to 1,099 headquarters companies, including 447 regional headquarters for multinationals, representing 46.8 percent of Shanghai's total.

These companies generate an average annual revenue of 3.425 billion yuan, 234 million yuan in profit, and an annual import/export volume of 797 million yuan, according to Xu Xin, Pudong's deputy director, who spoke at the conference.

In the past three years, 14 percent of these companies saw double-digit revenue growth, 17.5 percent achieved double-digit profit growth, and 8.7 percent experienced similar growth in trade volume. Additionally, 13 percent invest more than 10 percent of their revenue in R&D, while 7 percent hold more than 50 valid patents globally, he added.