Visy dumps Shell for BP – to offset fleet emissions

Environmentally innovative – BP’s Global Choice program lures Visy

Very encouraging – wouldn’t it be great to get some more ‘big moves’ from ‘big companies’?

Visy will offset the greenhouse emissions from its entire 800 vehicle fleet – around 19,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases pa, which equates to taking almost 3,700 cars off the road – by signing up to BP’s Global Choice program.

From 1 March 2007 Visy’s entire Australian car and truck fleet will begin switching to BP supplied fuels for all petrol, diesel, LPG and hybrid vehicles.

Through its Global Choice program BP Australia will then fund projects around the country that actively reduce greenhouse gases – projects that would not have been funded without the program.

Visy CEO, Harry Debney says:

“Visy spends in excess of $5 million a year on fuels for our car and truck fleet and we are aware of the impact their emissions have on the environment. We have already converted more than 150 of our 800 strong car fleet to LPG and we are looking at alternative fuels such as biodiesel. But we wanted to do more and BP Global Choice was the obvious answer…

…by switching our fuel account to BP we are not only helping to reduce our environmental impact we are helping to reward a company which is acting in an environmentally responsible manner. Hopefully this sends a message to other businesses that there are many ways to have a positive environmental impact and a positive financial impact at the same time.”

Visy and BP were members of the Australian Business Roundtable on Climate Change – a group of six leading Australian companies which has called for early action to address the impact of global warming.

Visy is the largest corporate to have signed up to BP Global Choice since the program was launched in 2001.

The Global Choice projects include:

• converting coal and oil-fired burners at the Riverstone rendering plant in NSW to gas;
• collecting and flaring landfill gas at South Cardup in WA;
• redeveloping the Yellowbank treatment plant in Queensland to prevent methane emissions.

Switching accounts from Shell to BP will cost Visy nothing but should reduce its environmental impact and both Visy and BP hope it will send a message to other companies about the positive contributions the COULD make. [AFR 1 March 2007]