New Delhi, NFAPost: NatWest Group has teamed up with Microsoft in order to help its UK business better understand its carbon footprint and create tailored action plans to reduce its carbon emissions leveraging digital technologies.
It is scheduled to be piloted later this year, and building on Microsoft’s innovative cloud, data and AI platform alongside NatWest Group’s deep customer understanding, the bank will support business customers in understanding how and where they can reduce their emissions.
Alison Rose, Chief Executive Officer of NatWest Group, said tackling climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our time.
“As the leading bank in the UK for businesses, we have a significant responsibility, and the ability, to encourage, enable and to lead the way in the UK to transition to a net zero carbon economy,” said Alison Rose.
Industry collaboration
She also said cross-industry collaboration and powerful partnerships will help to accelerate the speed of the transition, and she is very pleased we are working with Microsoft to help Britain’s businesses to understand and tackle their carbon footprints.
The bank surveyed 500 business customers of different sizes to know about their challenges in meeting their climate ambitions.
Eighty-eight per cent of those surveyed said reducing their indirect emissions, such as those in their supply chains, is difficult to get external support for. And 41% said reducing indirect emissions was ‘very challenging’ or ‘incredibly challenging for them.
Microsoft UK Chief Executive Officer Clare Barclay said Microsoft is grounded its carbon-negative strategy in the belief that technology can help solve the world’s biggest challenges.
Sustainability aspiration
“We are focused upon pulling all of the levers of influence we have including our operations as a customer, supplier, investor, employer, policy advocate and partner,” said Clare Barclay.
Clare Barclay said Microsoft is proud to partner with NatWest on its bold sustainability aspirations. “Partnerships help us accelerate progress and together I’m looking forward to enabling more UK businesses to drive the progress we so urgently need,” said Clare Barclay.
This piece of work is a demonstration of NatWest Group and Microsoft’s commitments not just to tackle their own climate impacts but to support other businesses to reduce theirs through the use of data and technology.
Both companies have put tackling climate change at the heart of their strategies.
