The German Trade Office Taipei has released its latest Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report on August 28. During the publication press conference for the CSR report, the trade office has also given its CSR Award to three German companies operating in Taiwan: Merck Taiwan, BASF Taiwan and igus Taiwan.
The CSR Report also features an all-new comprehensive listing of those United Nations
Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) that are supported by each company. The 17 goals
for sustainable development were originally formulated by the United Nations in 2015 to
create a future global development framework, aiming to promote sustainable development on an economic, social, and ecological level.
Axel Limberg, Chief Representative and Executive Director of the German Trade Office Taipei, commented that the 4th edition of the CSR report lists over 57 CSR activities initiated by 28 German companies in the past year.
Alongside Merck and BASF, Included in the report are some of the key suppliers of global semiconductors, such as Bosch, Infineon, Carl Zeiss and Siemens. According to Bosch, for example, its over 400 locations worldwide have become climate neutral in 2020 as a result of its strategy to increase energy efficiency, generate renewable energy, purchase green electricity and use carbon credits to offset inevitable carbon emissions.
Judy Huang, Head of Communications and Government Affairs of Merck in Taiwan, remarked that Merck is a 355-year-old company with sustainability as a vital component of its daily business operations. In terms of ESG goals, Huang mentioned that Merck's key initiatives in Taiwan include carbon, wastes and water reduction. She highlighted that the chemical and pharmaceutical company has reduced carbon emission by 58% and water usage by 70% in Taiwan in 2022, and by 2040 the company seeks to achieve climate-neutral operations throughout its entire value chain.
Since both Merck and BASF are suppliers of TSMC, the foundry's recent decision to set up a fabrication facility in Germany also makes deeper cooperations with its suppliers critical, especially the German suppliers that are more familiar with the country's ESG-related practices. Talking to DIGITIMES Asia, Huang noted that Merck's customers, including TSMC, has very clear developmental goals, and Merck cooperates with them to achieve these aims.
"Our customers, include TSMC, have very clear developmental goals, and we cooperate with them to achieve these goals," noted Huang. The Head of Communications of Merck Taiwan also pointed to Merck's EUR500 million investment in Taiwan announced in 2021, indicating that it can also reduce the carbon footprint for its customers. "Many of our products were produced in other regions, but are now relocated to Taiwan," said Huang. "According to our calculation, one product line can reduce 800 tons of carbon footprint, and with more product lines moved to Taiwan in the future, it will be a great help to TSMC and other customers," said Huang, believing that there will be more intensive cooperation between TSMC and Merck as the former expands to Germany.
Sand Dee Ng, Managing Director of BASF Taiwan, also indicated that TSMC invites its suppliers to purchase green electricity together. "If TSMC can totally switch to green electricity in the future, it needs the support of Scope 3 companies like us," she observed. "If we can also reduce our carbon emission, it can also be a complete carbon emission result for TSMC in terms of Scope 1, 2, 3," said the managing director.
