Corporate Sustainability Wobbles on World Stage

Staying green means navigating the grey

Recently, a company in the US with dozens of factories unveiled a pledge to achieve net zero by 2028. This means the business wants to remove as much emissions from the environment as it produces. To do this, the Texas-based firm is spending $200 million on installing solar panels, in a bid to transition its energy infrastructure to clean sources.

But, here is the problem: management is conflicted because almost 50% of US-built solar panels are produced by Chinese factories in America. The management team wanted to buy American. So, last week, the company pushed back its net zero pledge as it seeks to find solar panels produced by American companies at an affordable price.

Except for the last part, where Chinese companies in the US will supply 50% of all solar panels next year, the scenario above is actually made up.