From Renewable Energy to Operational Action: Kuraray America’s Approach to Reducing Emissions
Zero Emissions Day is an opportunity to reflect on how long-term commitments and day-to-day operational improvements can work together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
In October 2025, Kuraray entered into a ten-year virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) supporting its U.S. companies. The agreement provides renewable energy certificates equivalent to 300 GWh annually from an existing solar facility in Wharton County, Texas, owned by Tokyo Gas America Ltd. The VPPA began in October 2025.
The agreement supports the renewable electricity component of the Kuraray Group’s broader climate goals: reducing Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 63% by 2035, compared with a 2021 baseline, and achieving net zero by 2050.
The VPPA is an important step, but it is not a stand-alone solution. It does not eliminate all emissions associated with Kuraray America's operations. Meaningful progress also requires practical measures that reduce energy use, improve resource efficiency, and address emissions at the operational level.
Across Kuraray America, Inc., our facilities are putting this approach into practice. These initiatives are also detailed in Powering Progress Through Conservation, which highlights energy-conservation efforts across Kuraray America’s U.S. manufacturing sites.
♻️ At Washington Works in West Virginia, automated controls now stop agitators at the end of a batch and restart them when processing resumes. The site is also replacing oversized motors with properly sized equipment and has upgraded approximately 75% of its legacy equipment.
♻️ At the EVAL facility in Pasadena, Texas, an improved ethylene recovery system captures material from waste-gas streams and returns it to the manufacturing process.
♻️ Other facilities are improving insulation, introducing more efficient climate-control systems, extending the service life of process materials, and replacing fluorescent lighting with LEDs.
♻️ The Bayport site is replacing traditional insulation with aerogel in selected applications and upgrading lighting as fixtures come due.
♻️ The SEPTON plant has moved to a longer-lasting drying material that needs fewer regenerations, reducing energy use and waste.
Each measure is different in scale and application, but together they demonstrate how long-term climate goals are translated into operational action.
Climate change cannot be addressed through a single agreement, technology, or project. Progress comes from combining renewable energy procurement with consistent, measurable improvements across our operations.
One year into this ten-year commitment, the work continues.