ERA to release first ever carbon reporting guidance for the equipment rental industry by mid-2024

Report will also set an example for equipment ‎rental companies worldwide

 28 Feb 2024, New Delhi | Nirmesh Singh

The world is continuously looking for ways to reduce carbon emissions. United Nations aims to keep global warming to no more than 1.5°C – as called for in the Paris Agreement, emissions need to be reduced by 45% by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050.

Emissions reduction is essential to meeting international and regional climate targets, achieving net zero and limiting the effects of climate change. Reducing carbon footprint and its negative impact on the environment, ensures all people in new generations will have a liveable and equitable planet to grow up on.

Carbon emission reduction refers solely to the reduction of an individual, business or country’s CO2 emissions, not other greenhouse gases. Therefore, reducing carbon emission is also the concern of equipment rental industry.

The European Rental Association (ERA) is creating the first ever carbon reporting guidance for the equipment rental industry, with global professional services provider KPMG contracted to carry out the project. The project is being steered by the ERA Sustainability Committee with the final report expected to be released by the middle of 2024.‎

According to European Rental Association (ERA), in Europe, this is becoming a legal requirement for bigger ‎companies, with the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive legislation coming into ‎effect soon.‎ ‎

“Reporting on carbon emissions is increasingly important for the equipment rental industry, with different ‎‎stakeholders expecting, or even requiring, companies to measure their sustainability performance, ‎set ‎targets and report on their progress,” said the statement from ERA recently.

‎Michel Petitjean, Secretary General of ERA, said, “There is currently no agreed methodology available for calculating the carbon footprint of equipment ‎rental companies, who are today reporting on their carbon footprint in a way that is not harmonised ‎and, therefore, not comparable between different companies.” ‎‎

“With this in mind, and in the context of the increasing legal and other pressures for companies to report on their sustainability performance, it is important to define a reference framework for the entire rental sector. This will not only be of benefit to the European industry, but will also set an example for equipment ‎rental companies worldwide,” he added.

The ERA carbon reporting guidance will build on the methodology of the Equipment CO2 Calculator – https://equipmentcalculator.org/en – and will include a list and definitions of GHG protocol categories that are key for the rental sector, a methodology for calculating GHG emissions and a standard set of values for elements used in the methodology, including rental sector specific ‎activity data and relevant emission factors.

The guidance will focus on rental industry-specific operations, such as:

• • Equipment use: To calculate the emissions generated by the use of the equipment it is necessary to track the duration of rental, as well as each type and size of equipment rented. This is then used to calculate the amount of fuel by its equipment while it is rented out to customers (fuel, electricity).

• • Use of sold products: To calculate the emissions generated by the use of equipment once it has been sold and taken out of rental fleets, it is necessary to define a method for collecting the number of hours of use remaining and the average use of the equipment.

• • Production of equipment: The emissions generated by the production of the equipment by an OEM.

• • Maintenance and repairs: The emissions generated by the maintenance and repair of equipment. This includes emissions generated during the repair process.

• • Transportation: The emissions generated by the transportation of the equipment to and from rental locations. This includes emissions from the outsourced delivery and pickup of equipment (scope 3), as well as emissions generated by the rental company’s own transportation fleet (scope 1).

• • Waste disposal: The emissions generated by the disposal of waste generated by rental equipment. This includes emissions from the disposal of used oil and filters, as well as from the disposal of scrap metal and other waste materials.