The Ural Interregional Research and Education Center Will Actively Develop ESG Topics

11:57, December 24, 2021

This will allow companies to reduce the negative impact on the environment

Center of competencies in the field of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) is planned to be created in the Urals in the very near future. The necessity of creation of the new platform focused on ESG agenda was noted at the project session in Ekaterinburg with participation of representatives of universities, academic institutes, companies and authorities of Sverdlovsk, Kurgan and Chelyabinsk Regions. The session was held within the framework of development of the Ural Interregional Research and Education Center - "Advanced Industrial Technologies and Materials".

"The session turned out to be very relevant for all its participants. Every month the ESG agenda in Russia is being brought to a higher and higher level. The companies, we work with, are more and more often aware of the relevance of this topic, because it will directly affect the production and sales of their products. The ESG component is entering the market, the world space in a very serious way, and one should pay attention to it. Now virtually all Ural Interregional Research and Education Center's projects contain an ESG component, and we are sure that this should be a separate block in each project. At the session we worked through each project from the ESG perspective," says Ural Interregional Research and Education Center's Development Director Igor Manzhurov.

Igor Manzhurov adds that now there is a clear demand from companies for specialists in the field of ESG. This concerns, first of all, the development of additional professional education, as well as master's programs of universities, which will give the graduates competences in such a topical topic.

"We understand that in the Research and Education Center we can create a platform of interaction where specialists can act as experts on a wide range of issues. The Research and Education Center is a ready-made expert platform to address the issues of companies in the field of ESG. At the session we saw the real interest of enterprises in this topic. Also, the competences of Ural Interregional Research and Education Center will be useful for regional authorities in general - to form relevant strategies, regulations and programs," said Manzhurov.

The ESG agenda is based on the need to reduce the negative impact of industry on the environment. The most important role in this process should be played by carbon landfills, one of which was recently created near Ekaterinburg.

"The industry is very interested in the issue of monitoring greenhouse gas emissions. It seems to be a simple task, but it has many difficulties. The specialists of our Ural Interregional Research and Education Center have technological solutions, which allow to solve these problems. The exchange of experience between universities and academic institutions is very important here. And, of course, it is important to interact with companies that are interested in solutions related to verification, counting and reduction of emissions," says Viktor Valdayskikh, director of the Ural Federal University Botanical Garden.

Valdayskikh reminded that in just one week the law "On Limiting Greenhouse Gas Emissions" will come into force. Accordingly, companies will have to submit the relevant data on a regular basis.

"In the near future, a quota for greenhouse gas emissions per unit of production will be set for the export of products. A so-called cross-border tax will be charged for the difference between the established quotas and actual emissions. Companies will have to pay for each ton of carbon dioxide in excess of the quota. Now its price is about $70, and analysts predict its rapid rise. Someone is already calculating possible losses, but someone, on the contrary, wants to make money on this, because carbon units can be mined as bitcoins, and sold. And here it is important for us to reach international standards and, of course, form our own, national ones," concludes Viсtor Valdayskikh.

Reference

Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) - three criteria according to which the decision about possible cooperation with a company or refusal from it is made. ESG is a set of company performance standards that socially aware investors use to screen potential investments. Environmental criteria define how a company acts as a preserver of nature.