According to Jim Fitterling, chairman and CEO at Dow, the challenge of achieving net-zero and circularity is a big opportunity that comes with its own set of challenges.
“I think the challenges are more related to the investment that has to be made. We have to do it wisely, because our shareholders expect a return on that investment,” he said.
In both cases, Fitterling said, “customers require certainty that those claims are real and that those reductions we’re making in carbon emissions, or the recycled materials are actually certifiable and verifiable.”
Discussing Dow’s plan to achieve net-zero by 2050, Fitterling said that as much as 95% of emissions reduction will be achieved through the investments in new technologies like wind and solar, hydrogen and carbon capture, which are available today.
Challenges of net-zero include ROI, consumer behavior, say Dow and LyondellBasell execs
Jim Fitterling, chairman and CEO with Dow. Photo courtesy CERAWeek by S&P Global
“Others are in the future, like advanced nuclear, high-temperature power and steam as well as electricity,” Fitterling said. “But I think the industry can do this with technology investments instead of relying on offsets. That’s the real objective for decarbonizing.”
Meeting these challenges will also require industry growth, Fitterling said. “We’ll have to grow because all of the materials that are needed to make wind blades and solar panels — and all the alternative energy products that are in high demand like EV batteries and the components of the EVs themselves — are going to require more of the materials we make,” he said. “In that regard, we will use more oil and gas, but we may not burn it. Rather, we may use more oil and gas to turn it into durable or non-durable goods, as in the case of packaging.”
Regarding circularity, Fitterling said Dow sees “a huge demand” from its brand owners.
“In the market today, we’re seeing a massive influx of money into everything from waste management companies to municipal recycling facilities — new technologies for sorting, trying to get more curbside collections for polyurethanes businesses, recycling big bulk items like mattresses and pillows and making car seats from old furniture and materials, are things we’re seeing. The automotive industry is big right now on not just making an EV, but a totally net-zero vehicle that has a zero carbon footprint.”
Fitterling was speaking on a panel at CERAWeek by S&P Global, held in Houston. Joining Fitterling as a speaker, Ken Lane, executive VP of global olefins and polyolefins with LyondellBasell, said he also recognizes that quest for net-zero is “definitely an opportunity that has challenges,” but he is confident that the industry will achieve that goal.
Lane acknowledged this industry has demonstrated successful transition in the past, though on a different scale. “We’ve transitioned from chemistry that is based on salt or coal to NGLs and different energy sources. And I think that’s the great thing about our industry. We have demonstrated the ability to scale using those new technologies.”
Lane accentuated the need for the industry to “play a leading driver role” in encouraging consumer behavior to influence public policy and regulation toward net-zero.
“There’s certainly demand there; we can see that socially,” Lane concluded. “Consumers and customers want to see the transition and they may be asking for something, but they’re not changing their behaviors yet. All of those things are going to have to come together. It will happen, but it’s going to take time.”
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