Hyundai Kia Motors Selected as Top Company in Climate Change Response Evaluation

Hyundai Motor Company, Honored in Carbon Management Honors Club for 2 Consecutive Years... Best in Water Resource Management Sector

Hyundai Kia Motors Yangjae Office Building (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors announced on the 28th that they were selected for the 'Carbon Management Honors Club,' awarded only to the top five domestic companies in the 2019 evaluation conducted by the global environmental management certification organization, the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). In particular, Hyundai Motor was selected for the Carbon Management Honors Club for the second consecutive year following last year.

CDP is recognized as a credible indicator evaluating corporate sustainability alongside the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and the FTSE4GOOD Index. Acting on behalf of global financial investment institutions, it conducts evaluations related to global environmental issues such as climate change and water resources for major listed companies in each country, and assigns grades into eight categories including Leadership A, Leadership A-, and Management B based on the results. The top five companies in evaluation scores are selected for the Carbon Management Honors Club.

Hyundai Motor received Leadership A in both carbon management and water resources by being recognized for activities such as ▲development and distribution of eco-friendly vehicles including hydrogen electric vehicles and electric vehicles ▲introduction of high-efficiency greenhouse gas reduction facilities at each business site ▲installation of solar panels at the Asan and Ulsan plants ▲and mid- to long-term environmental management strengthening activities such as the zero-discharge system at the Asan plant. Notably, Hyundai Motor participated for the first time in the water resource management category this year and received Leadership A, being selected as the best company in sustainable management.

Kia Motors earned Leadership A by being recognized for proactive climate change response efforts including ▲leading the expansion of the eco-friendly vehicle market through sales of eco-friendly vehicles ▲greenhouse gas reduction through improvements such as high-efficiency motors, turbo refrigerants, and air conditioners in production processes ▲transparent disclosure of carbon emission information ▲and concrete carbon management initiatives.

This year, evaluations were conducted for over 8,300 companies worldwide, with 181 companies receiving Leadership A grades in the climate change category. Among them, a total of nine Korean companies, including Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, were recognized. In the water resource management category, 72 companies received Leadership A grades, with only two Korean companies including Hyundai Motor.

A Hyundai-Kia Motors official stated, “Both Hyundai and Kia achieved the highest scores in this evaluation, becoming models of sustainable management,” and added, “We plan to actively implement further measures such as value chain efficiency from production to sales, expansion of renewable energy use, and reduction of greenhouse gases at business sites in the future.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.