Sustainability management

Area of action: Environment & energy

[Translate to English:] Handlungsfelder des Nachhaltigkeitsmanagements

Protecting the environment and climate, conserving resources

By handling resources responsibly and using renewable energies, we aim to minimize the environmental impact of our business activities and protect the climate. In this way, we are helping establish the conditions for a livable future for all people. Our certified management systems for the environment in accordance with ISO 14001 and for energy in accordance with ISO 50001 at our headquarters in Niestetal, Germany, help us to continuously improve our processes and increase our environmental performance.

Sustainable energy use

Climate protection

Responsible use of materials

Waste & recycling

Sustainable energy use

A globally sustainable, decentralized energy supply based on renewable energies is at the center of our business activities. Renewable energies also play an important role in our own energy supply.

Since 2020, we have been supplying our headquarters in Germany entirely with decentralized renewable power from the immediate surroundings. Our in-house PV systems also contribute to this.

Since 2023, we have been using 100% electricity from renewable energies worldwide. For the approximately 2.2% of global electricity consumption that we have not yet been able to cover with green electricity due to contractual conditions, we have acquired internationally recognized renewable energy certificates.

Climate protection

The SMA Managing Board is convinced that the target agreed at the 2016 UN Climate Summit to limit global warming to 1.5°C must be achieved in order to preserve the planet for future generations. For this reason, the Managing Board has geared the SMA group toward contributing to the achievement of this target both with its systems and solutions and in its operating activities.

Our technologies facilitate a climate-friendly energy supply all around the world. In 2023, SMA PV inverters with a total capacity of around 132 GW worldwide contributed to avoiding the emission of almost 70 million tons of CO₂.

We are also driving forward decarbonization within the company. By 2025, we want to supply the headquarters and all other major locations worldwide with 100% climate-neutral electricity and heat. Our climate neutrality rate is currently already almost 97%.

Responsible use of materials

For us, the responsible use of materials means continuously increasing the material efficiency of our products, using more environmentally friendly materials and complying with regulatory requirements at all times. Improving our products’ sustainability performance is something that we consider in the product development process already.

By increasing the proportion of secondary raw materials and using fewer materials in SMA products, we conserve resources and thus protect the environment. In 2023, we reduced the specific weight of SMA inverters by a further 15 percent.

Waste & recycling

In dealing with waste, we use the measures of the waste hierarchy as a guideline. In 2023, we have already exceeded our target for 2025 of reducing the specific amount of waste in the operational areas of the main site in Niestetal/Kassel, Germany, by 25 percent compared to the base year 2018. The target also includes hazardous waste.

Where waste avoidance is not possible, we examine measures for reuse. The next step involves recycling measures. Based on our globally recorded waste figures, our recycling rate for 2023 is 90% in relation to the total waste volume.