The Audi Group has calculated its corporate carbon footprint and is the first premium automobile manufacturer to be certified according to the international standard ISO 14064. Audi made a detailed assessment of emissions in all automobile lifecycle phases; experts of DEKRA Certification GmbH and DEKRA Certification Inc. reviewed and confirmed the basic data sources and calculations.

As the DEKRA experts confirm, the corporate carbon footprint of the Audi Group worldwide amounts to 57 million tons of CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e) each year. This amount represents approximately 0.16% of worldwide CO₂ emissions in the year 2012. The emissions during the cars’ use-phase (73%); the production of components by suppliers (21%) and Audi’s logistics activities (1.4%) cause a major proportion of the annual emissions.

The calculated corporate carbon footprint includes all of the Audi Group’s greenhouse-gas emissions over the entire lifecycle of the models. All direct and indirect CO2 emissions (scopes 1 and 2) are included—such as emissions from production plants and from electricity and heating—as well as the scope 3 emissions, for example from the supply and logistics chain, from production waste and from business trips.

We are making a clear statement by calculating and publishing our CO₂ footprint. We are making the main causes of emissions in our value chain transparent, and will further reduce them over the entire lifecycle.

The manufacturing process of a car, on average, accounts for approximately one-quarter of the emissions of its entire lifecycle. It is therefore necessary to focus on all areas of influence—Audi’s production processes as well as the supply chain—according to Waltl.

We regard the ability to know our greenhouse-gas footprint as an opportunity. We have evaluated numerous sources in detail, so that we can analyze emissions even more accurately and define effective measures for all lifecycle phases. This serves to increase energy efficiency, to save energy, and ultimately to reduce our CO₂ footprint.

Compared with the year 2008, Audi will reduce its fleet CO₂ emissions by 25% by 2016. This will be aided by models such as the Audi A3 e-tron lug-in hybrid, the Audi A3 Sportback g-tron and the Audi ultra models.

In addition, the Group has implemented numerous projects to further reduce its CO₂ emissions. Examples here include the highly energy-efficient data center with TÜV certification; the use of green electricity and waste heat; and the “Green Train” powered by regenerative electricity that is used to transport cars from the Audi sites in Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm to the North Sea port in Emden.