At DHI, we actively work to reduce waste, minimise our carbon footprint and optimise water use. Some aspects of our operations, such as the use of diesel fuel for our marine fleet and water usage in our test facilities, are more energy-intensive than others. As new technologies become available, we remain open to adopting innovative solutions to reduce emissions and environmental impact.

 

DHI is in the business of protecting and managing water environments and ecosystems, and that is why being prudent in the way we use water is second nature to us.

 

Each DHI office is responsible for monitoring usage and ensuring functioning utilities infrastructure. These offices are typically not water intensive as consumption is limited to restrooms and kitchen/canteen facilities.

 

In addition to business offices, DHI operates ballast water test facilities and laboratories in Denmark, where we conduct, for example, biological evaluations of maritime technologies. DHI's water consumption for test facilities and ballast water business had a modest reduction by 2%, from 13.8 mega litres in 2023 to 13.5 mega litres in 2024, as the business activities remained consistent during this period. Ballast water and lake water used for test facilities make up the largest portion of DHI’s water consumption. The ballast water activity is unique and is not comparable to the other operations at DHI. This is why it is reported separately within the FTE-based water consumption metrics.

 

For 2024, our total water footprint, excluding test facilities, amounted to 5.7 mega litres, an increase from the year before (2023: 5.2 mega litres). This equates to a water intensity of 5,038 litres per FTE for the year (2023: 4,724 litres per FTE). The increase reflects enhancements in our approach to estimating usage across some of our global offices, ensuring greater transparency and accuracy. We continue to work towards reductions.

 

DHI has committed to working towards net zero by 2025 related to sources that are owned or controlled by DHI, namely within Scope 1 and Scope 2. Our scope 1 emissions stem from our owned assets such as fuel for our fleet of marine vessels and cars, whereas Scope 2 emissions relate to energy purchases, with considerable energy used to power our servers, IT equipment and test facilities. In 2024, historical data has been restated to reflect updates in emission factors and enhancements in methodology resulting in improved accuracy.

 

Our carbon footprint (Scope 1 and 2 market-based) amounted to 689 MtCO2e (2023: 1,047 MtCO2e). Despite an increase in residual emission factors across Europe, a reduction in emission has been observed as we continue our efforts to transition to greener electricity. For example, our headquarters in Denmark operates entirely on wind energy, and two other offices are powered by renewable and carbon-neutral electricity plans. As of 2024, 30% of our overall consumption comes from green electricity. This reduction is further supported by recurring relocation of certain offices to more energy efficient facilities.

 

With our limited physical assets and emission sources, we have viewed high-quality carbon removal credits as a meaningful way to support collective carbon reduction efforts. To this end, we continued in 2024 to acquire verified carbon removal credits to address our Scope 2 emissions.

 

Our carbon footprint (Scope 1 and 2 location-based) was 1,458 MtCO2e, a decrease compared to the year before (2023: 1,547 MtCO2e) with a decrease in the per FTE amounting to 1.3 MtCO2e per FTE (2023: 1.4 MtCO2e per FTE). Changes in emission factors, particularly in the European regions, have contributed to the overall decrease in emissions for DHI.

 

We will continue to implement energy savings to reduce emission and costs.

 

Our Scope 3 emissions from air travel decreased marginally by 1% in 2024 compared to 2023. Thus, emissions from air travel decreased from 1,291 MtCO2e in 2023 to 1,277 MtCO2e in 2024, despite the high increase in revenue from 2023 to 2024. The internal air travel fee is considered to be part of this stabilisation, despite increase in activity.

 

We will work to continuously reduce our consumption of energy and water. Our aim is to invest in our own services e.g., the method for blue carbon. The establishment of a CSRD team within DHI further reflects our commitment to aligning with evolving sustainability standards and driving accountability, including the refinement and expansion of our emission inventory, particularly for Scope 3.