Merck KGaA

Carbon per million dollars of revenue. The legacy industry-standard reference (CDP, MSCI). Useful for cross-sector context, but distorted by margin — high-margin firms appear artificially efficient. Read alongside the operational and asset intensities for the full picture.

OpEx (operating expenditure) is the running cost of the business — staff, services, energy, materials. This shows how carbon-intensive operations are per million dollars of spend. Removes the margin distortion that revenue-based ratios introduce.

EVIC (Enterprise Value Including Cash) is the firm's total capital footprint — equity + debt + cash + minority interest. The EU's standard intensity measure (SFDR PAI 3) — answers: how much carbon does each million of capital deployed in this business produce?

PP&E (Property, Plant & Equipment) plus leased real-estate assets is the firm's physical infrastructure on the balance sheet. This shows the carbon intensity of that physical footprint — uses Scope 1+2+3 for consistency with the other headline intensities. Surfaces stranded-asset risk for asset-heavy firms.

• · berkeley_voluntary_registry

Merck targets 80% renewable electricity coverage by 2030; achieved 52.2% in 2024. Procurement mix uses bundled instruments (retail green, GOs, GECs - 19.2%) and unbundled instruments (US-RECs, VPPAs at 19.9%, I-RECs, TIGRs - 26.3%). Total contractual instrument coverage 45.5% of energy procured. Self-generated renewables include on-site photovoltaic projects (e.g., Jakarta site). Key Scope 2 lever is procurement via Virtual Power Purchase Agreements (VPPAs).

As part of its own business activities, Merck does not currently carry out any activities to remove or reduce greenhouse gases that are financed via CO2eq certificates. Reductions are achieved entirely through abatement and renewable procurement rather than offsets/removals.

• Process emissions reduction (NF3, N2O, refrigerants)

  Largest Scope 1 lever: NF3 abatement projects at Ulsan (South Korea) and Hometown (USA) Specialty Gases sites reduced 385,743 tCO2e in 2024. Life Science Freon/process gas reduction cut 12,655 tCO2e vs 2023. Scope 1 emissions reduced 53% vs 2020 baseline — target achieved ahead of schedule. Two EU-ETS facilities (Darmstadt gas turbine, Gernsheim gas engine) identified as locked-in emissions risks.

• Energy management & efficiency (EDISON, on-site PV)

  Life Science EDISON program achieved 3,840 tCO2e reduction in 2024 via efficiency optimization. Healthcare invested in on-site photovoltaics (e.g., Jakarta site reducing 12% of emissions) and HVAC/water utility optimization. €10M CapEx allocated to energy management in 2024, €12M planned 2025.

• Material efficiency in manufacturing

  Material Efficiency program improves yield and reduces production waste, contributing to Scope 3 Cat 1 reductions. Example: Danvers USA Mobius Single-Use products process improvement avoided 240 tCO2e in 2024. Expected to be fully implemented by end 2027.

• Use-of-sold-products gas substitution (Electronics)

  Electronics specialty gases (etching, cleaning, deposition, dopant) represent dominant Scope 3 Cat 11 lever (1,021,008 tCO2e). Merck develops optimized specialty gases with lower global warming potential for semiconductor customers, plus electricity-consuming product control devices abatement. €6M CapEx allocated 2024 to optimized specialty gases.

• Mode shift logistics (air→sea freight)

  Life Science mode shift program shifted air freight to sea freight, reducing Scope 3 emissions by 1,862 tCO2e in 2024 vs prior year. Expected to be fully implemented by end 2025.

• Supplier decarbonization program

  Primary Scope 3 lever: program assesses and enhances supplier compliance with SBTi, increases renewable electricity share at suppliers, and educates on emission reduction levers. Currently calculated on industry-average emission factors so quantified impact not yet trackable. 75% of relevant suppliers covered by valid sustainability assessment (94% by spend) via TfS/EcoVadis.