Siemens Energy Limited · Transition

SF6 (GWP 24,300) leaks from HV switchgear. Vendor readiness on SF6-free switchgear sets the phase-out timeline. Single largest Scope 1 lever available to a TSO.

As a grid technology manufacturer and grid operator supplier, Siemens Energy's own Scope 1 footprint is concentrated in SF6 leakage from switchgear produced and serviced by its Grid Technologies Business Area [E1]. This exposure sits alongside a much larger enabled-emissions lever in Scope 3 category 11 (use of sold products, dominated by gas and steam turbines), where lifetime and fuel-transition assumptions materially swing reported figures [E2][E6][E7]. No disclosed operational detail on installed base SF6 leak rates or site-level switchgear inventory is provided in the extracted reports.

Siemens Energy is phasing out SF6 through its Blue Portfolio, an SF6-free switchgear line, and has cut SF6-related emissions 57% against a 60%-by-2030 target versus a 2019 baseline, achieving an 11-point gain in FY2023 alone [E1]. This SF6 work sits within a broader SBTi-validated decarbonization program covering Scope 1+2 (46% reduction by FY2025, already hit at 59% two years early) and Scope 3 category 11 (28% by FY2030) [E3][E8][E2], plus a supply-chain partnership with TenneT targeting a 30% cut in shared grid-infrastructure emissions by 2030 via recycled copper and greener steel/aluminum [E5].

Steel, aluminium, copper, concrete for every new circuit + substation. Sector decarbonisation of these materials caps how quickly grid Scope 3 falls.

As a manufacturer of transformers, switchgear and other grid-infrastructure equipment for utility customers, Siemens Energy's largest Scope 3 embodied-carbon exposure sits in purchased goods and services for grid hardware — steel, aluminium and especially copper used in transformer windings and cabling [E1]. This upstream category was materially resized in FY2023 reporting once Siemens Gamesa's purchased goods and transportation emissions were folded in, with roughly 10% of that unit's CO2e still extrapolated due to undefined material codes, underscoring how much of the embodied-materials footprint runs through complex, partly estimated supply chains [E2]. No structured emissions or targets data were provided to quantify Category 2 (capital goods) or grid-materials volumes directly, so exposure sizing here relies on the qualitative supply-chain evidence available.

Siemens Energy has a direct, named response to this pathway: its July 2024 partnership with grid operator TenneT targets a 30% cut in shared grid-infrastructure supply chain emissions by 2030, anchored on switching to 100% recycled copper in transformers — a single measure estimated to save ~6,500 tons of CO2e — plus greener steel and aluminium sourcing [E1]. This sits alongside a broader, SBTi-unvalidated company target of -30% relative Scope 3 upstream emissions per euro spent by 2030 against a 2018 baseline [E7]. Reporting on the upstream materials base itself is still maturing, as shown by the FY2023 restatement bringing Siemens Gamesa's purchased-goods emissions into scope with partial extrapolation [E2].

Contractor + OEM supply chain (transformer, cable, civils) carries most enabled Scope 3 through embodied materials.

Siemens Energy's enabled and embodied emissions exposure runs through its OEM and civils supply chain for turbines, transformers and grid infrastructure, with purchased goods and transportation & distribution forming the bulk of Scope 3 upstream after the Siemens Gamesa consolidation [E1]. Materials such as copper, steel and aluminum used in transformers are a key embodied-carbon lever, as highlighted in the shared grid-infrastructure supply chain with TenneT [E4]. Downstream, the long operating lifetimes of gas and steam turbines (28 years) mean use-of-sold-products emissions remain a major counterpart exposure to upstream supplier engagement [E7].

Siemens Energy has a Scope 3 supply chain target to cut relative emissions (kg CO2e/€ PVO spent) by 30% by 2030 against a 2018 baseline, reporting 19% progress as of FY2023 [E3], alongside an SBTi-validated 28% absolute reduction target for use-of-sold-products by FY2030 [E8]. It has partnered with grid operator TenneT since July 2024 to cut shared supply chain emissions 30% by 2030 through measures like 100% recycled copper in transformers and greener steel/aluminum [E4], backed by a binding Supplier Code of Conduct [E2] and supplier sustainability self-assessments now required across all qualifications globally since 2023 [E6]. The company has also stopped bidding on new coal-only power plant projects since November 2020 as part of its downstream decarbonization strategy [E5].