The problem was massive: two million hectares of African forests were lost annually to charcoal production for cooking, an area equivalent to 13 times Greater London, resulting in one billion tons of carbon emissions yearly. At the same time, an estimated 700,000 yearly deaths, primarily children under the age of five, were the result of poor indoor air quality from unclean cooking fuel. Forecasts suggested exponential demand growth for charcoal driven by rising population and increased urbanization in Africa. Eighty-three percent of sub-Saharan African households relied on charcoal or wood for cooking. Greg Murray (chief executive officer), Sagun Saxena (chief innovation officer), Nicholas Stokes (chief financial officer) and Micael da Costa (chief systems officer) had decided to do something about it. In 2014, they co-founded KOKO Networks (KOKO), a climate-technology company that built and operated clean fuel utilities enabling nations to transition away from deforestation-charcoal. KOKO partnered with the owners of existing liquids infrastructure, and then used its unique technology and operating platform to deliver low-cost ultra-clean bioethanol cooking to a dense network of high-tech "KOKO Point" Fuel ATMs located in corner stores across low-income neighborhoods, which it used to retail directly to households. The end result was a safe, clean and affordable fuel located within a short walk of home, and which delivered a modern cooking experience at a price point that was materially lower than charcoal. By August 2023, KOKO served over one million households across ten cities in Kenya and planned to expand further in Kenya as well as build greenfield utilities in Rwanda and other African nations. Yet, the co-founders knew that the road ahead was full not only of opportunities, but also of challenges.
By August 2023, Re-Match, an artificial turf waste-to-value company, had operations in Denmark and the Netherlands and had recycled over 160,000 tons of waste and plastic fiber. With recent capital injection from the VC firm Verdane and a dual revenue business model, the company wanted to expand its operation to become the global leader in turf recycling. However, stakeholders were divided between rapid U.S. market entry and refining their proven model to generate more downstream revenue. This case study delineates Re-Match's business model and assesses the carbon reduction potential of recycling in comparison to landfilling or incineration. Additionally, it raises the question of whether to prioritize market dominance or operational efficiency and how to identify the most receptive market for Re-Match's recycling solution.
In 2023, Luciano Bueno, CEO and founder of plant cell culture agriculture company GALY, was considering the best path forward for his company as he planned to pitch Series B investors. GALY, founded in 2019, aimed to produce cotton and other crops from cells grown in the lab. The company hoped to create 500,000 tons of products by 2030, and by 2023, had produced proof of concepts of cotton, coffee, and cacao. Bueno had a number of decisions to make. How should the company scale? Where should it locate production? Should it build its own production facilities, or license its intellectual property to partner firms? Should the company continue operating an office in Brazil, or centralize operations in Boston? The answers to these questions would point the way forward, but which path was best?
The Germany-based startup Vytal operated the largest digital-native reusable packaging-as-a-service network globally, having raised nearly €15 million, established a large network of restaurant partners, and prevented the use of millions of single-use take-out food containers. However, Vytal's growth was slower than expected, challenging its unique pay-per-use model and environmental goals. This case highlights Vytal's growth trajectory in the years leading up to 2023, outlining its business model, utilization of digital technology, strategies for acquiring partners and customers, and regulatory developments within Europe. It also presents several options that the founders are considering to reach profitability, prepare for a Series B financing round, and expand internationally, such as charging partners for unused containers, implementing consumer fees on single-use containers, launching a loyalty program, and franchising to expand more rapidly.
By mid-2023, Neuberger Berman (NB), an active asset manager, had grown its assets under management to about half a trillion dollars and took pride in its client centricity and innovative spirit. Responding to client demand for investment products that integrated climate-related risks and opportunities, NB had designed an innovative measurement system, the Net Zero Alignment Indicator, assessing companies' alignment with the world's goal to reach net zero emissions around mid-century, built engagement capabilities among its research analysts and portfolio managers, and offered several investment products across asset classes and geographies. While most climate transition strategies almost completely divested from the energy sector and relied on a single quantitative data metric, NB's approach invested in energy and other high carbon intensive companies, used a plethora of quantitative metrics and qualitative analyst judgments, engaged with management leveraging bottom-up fundamental analysis, and over time re-assessed firm alignment with net zero goals. Given that NB's climate transition approach included high carbon emitters and its complexity, how could NB communicate its approach effectively to asset allocators? A second question revolved around "how high to set the bar." NB had to make critical design choices regarding the Net Zero Alignment Indicator and derivative investment strategies that would have significant implications for the climate transition and clients. Lastly, climate focused funds had seen significant inflows in China and NB wanted to integrate its net zero alignment indicator into the construction of investment products there. Given this, should the net zero transition alignment standards be different across geographies?
'Betting on Green Steel' traces the innovative journey embarked upon by a group of MBA students who have set out to conceive a novel steelmaker that pioneers the production of green steel. The ensemble is confronted with a series of critical choices that will shape the venture: Should the operation base be in India or Oman? What would be the best method for green steel production - carbon capture and storage, or green hydrogen? Who should they aim to cater to with their green steel - the automotive sector or the wind turbine manufacturing industry? And lastly, which business model would drive sustainable profit - green premium pricing or carbon credits? One of the team members is set to return to his family's steelmaking enterprise post-graduation, escalating the stakes to a personal level. This dynamic case study offers a thorough exploration of these key decision-making factors in the context of environmental sustainability and business strategy, providing fertile ground for engaging classroom discussions.
This case describes the decarbonization strategy of Arcos Dorados-McDonald's largest independent franchisee, operating in 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean-and how the company measured its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, including those generated directly by the company and by all of its suppliers. Set in May 2022, the case also describes the challenges faced by the company to understand the composition of its carbon footprint, as well as the actions it has taken to reduce it. Under CEO Marcelo Rabach, Arcos Dorados was focusing on reducing its carbon intensity. While the company had made progress in reducing carbon emissions from its operations, it now needed to develop a plan to address emissions in its supply chain, which directly impacted the composition of its menu. Options to reduce the carbon impact of menu items included replacing (or mixing) the beef used in sandwiches with less carbon-intensive ingredients; shifting sales toward chicken-based meals; adding plant-based menu options; and increasing the share of sales driven by coffee and ice cream. The plan should align with the company's double-digit growth strategy while also controlling costs to maintain profit margins. Confronting these challenges, what was the best product mix and prioritization for these alternatives? Which products should get more resources to develop and market? How should the company forecast demand for these products? And how could they ensure that their efforts to reduce their carbon intensity would avoid hampering the company's growth, especially given its context of fierce competition and macroeconomic and social disruptions?
When asked to identify an example of a circular economy business model that has generated billions in revenues for a company, ChatGPT, the famous chatbot that in 2022 rocked the world with its ability to perform a variety of tasks, immediately identified and highlighted Apple's iPhone trade-in program. The trade-in program encouraged customers to trade in their old devices, which were then refurbished and resold, or recycled for valuable components. With about 80% of the second-hand smartphone market comprised of iPhone and an increasing percentage of materials being recycled and reused in manufacturing, Apple was making progress towards circularity.
In May 2022, Roche Group, one of the largest healthcare companies in the world, hosted its first ESG investor event focused exclusively on its efforts to impact access to healthcare. While Roche had recently set an ambitious goal to double the number of patients that had access to its innovative medicines and diagnostic solutions within ten years, it was not at all clear how the firm should structure its resource allocation criteria, performance evaluations, reporting and incentive systems to align efforts internally toward these goals. Group CFO and CIO Alan Hippe was presented with two options, none of which he was particularly enthusiastic about. One was to lower the hurdle rate for projects related to ESG issues, thus relaxing profit expectations. The alternative was to incorporate a set of minimum ESG requirements in all of Roche's new project proposals. In this case, however, the risk was to reduce the focus on ESG from a strategic priority to a compliance exercise. In the presentation shared with investors at the ESG event, access to healthcare had been positioned as Roche's greatest contribution to society. This type of public commitment required more than a compliance-level of effort. In September, Alan Hippe would sit down with the executive committee to chart a path for integrating ESG issues into Roche's project selection and business planning. Hippe went on to define three objectives for ESG at Roche, "we need to align on targets, we need to get resource allocation right, and we need to report both internally and externally."
This case gives an overview of Elon Musk's career arc through the lens of the 2003 founding of Tesla and its growth through 2022. Background information is included on Tesla's unique strategic decisions, its operational and reputational struggles and successes, and the broader evolution of the electric vehicle market, emissions regulations, and green technology developments. The case also contains information on Musk's early life and endeavors beyond Tesla, with a focus on his management style and the implications for Tesla's success and his aim to influence human civilization for the better.
Within nine months from the time of its Initial Public Offering (IPO) in April of 2021, EKI Energy Services (EKI) shares had increased by more than 8,000%. Equally explosive was the growth of the company's revenues and Earnings Before Interest, Taxes and Depreciation (EBITDA), which rose in 2022 by almost ten and twenty times respectively. However, in 2022, several commentators started doubting the credibility of the carbon credits that firms, such as EKI, purchased or developed and sold to customers worldwide. Given that most of EKI's revenues relied on these credits, the company focused on its ongoing efforts to diversify the types of carbon credits that it developed and sold, while defending the validity of its existing carbon credit inventory. On April 25, 2022, EKI announced its intention to supply one billion carbon credits to clients within the next five years. In the next few months, EKI's stock price declined significantly from the highs of early 2022 but still traded close to 4,000% higher than its IPO price. Was this a reasonable price to pay for EKI's assets and future profitability? How sustainable were the earnings of the company and its stock market valuation in the fast-changing carbon credit market? Did the recent decline in EKI's stock price represent a buying opportunity, given its growth ambition?
The transition to a low carbon economy introduces many risks and opportunities for businesses. Risks emerge from regulatory actions, such as carbon taxes and cap and trade systems, technological innovation that develop alternatives for customers making existing products and services obsolete, changes in market preferences, such as consumers shifting purchases towards low carbon products, and liability concerns, from litigation connected to the physical impacts of climate change. Opportunities arise from new products and services that will be needed for the world to decarbonize (i.e., renewable energy, battery storage, hydrogen, plant-based protein, carbon capture and storage etc.). The business analysis of climate-related risks and opportunities will be critical for the optimal allocation of resources inside organizations and markets. This paper presents a generalizable framework for such analysis. Risks create demand for decarbonization solutions which in turn create opportunities for the supply of these solutions. Central considerations include the measurement and analysis of organizational carbon exposure, sensitivity, and adaptability.
In 2016, Swedish entrepreneurs Carl-Erik Lagercrantz and Peter Carlsson founded an electric battery company called Northvolt with the dual goals of creating a company to address climate change and bringing battery manufacture to Europe. Northvolt, which succeeded in building a "gigafactory" near the arctic circle in Sweden, was soon on track to become one of the largest and most sustainable battery manufacturers in the world. But, building "the world's greenest battery" to fight climate change was a difficult-and perhaps unrealistic-goal. How much could Northvolt really contribute to the European effort against society's greatest challenge?
As of August 2022, the Itau BBA had structured dozens of sustainability linked bonds, which made future interest payments a function of the borrower meeting a target for a sustainability metric, and had solidified its reputation as a pioneer of sustainable finance in Latin America. The next few years would provide the firm an opportunity to broaden its sustainable finance portfolio by engaging more firms in measuring and improving their performance on ESG issues, such as carbon emissions, biodiversity, workplace safety, and diversity and inclusion. At the same time, Itau BBA would need to carefully navigate the financial and reputational risks associated with underwriting, marketing, and distributing sustainable debt of firms exposed to significant ESG risks. Should Itau expand its sustainable debt business to firms with high ESG risks and if so, what must be done to gain support from Itau executives, investors, and high-risk issuers? What systems should Itau adopt to alleviate concerns and would the transaction costs of these systems, such as enhanced disclosure or monitoring, be too steep to justify underwriting the product? Luiza Dias Lopes Vasconcellos, the partner heading sustainable finance at Itau BBA, wondered whether pursuing growth in sustainable debt was worth the risks involved.
The case describes BMW's electrification and decarbonization strategy, and how the company measured carbon emissions throughout the life cycle of its vehicles and used tools like carbon abatement cost curves to evaluate decarbonization opportunities. In mid-2022, automakers, consumers, regulators, and investors were focusing on the transition from internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to electric vehicles (EV). While this would reduce tail-pipe emissions, the production of EVs-and especially their batteries-increased emissions in the supply chain. Under CEO Oliver Zipse, BMW was focusing on life cycle emissions and was pursuing a flexible powertrain strategy by offering vehicles with several powertrain options: gasoline and diesel-fueled ICE, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), and battery electric vehicles (BEV). Meanwhile, competing automakers were announcing deadlines by which they would stop selling ICE vehicles, buoyed by investment analysts and favorable press. BMW's approach was receiving a frostier reception in the stock market. Facing these pressures, how should BMW communicate and convince its stakeholders that its strategy was sustainable for both the environment and BMW's financial performance?
In 2015, David Crane was the CEO of NRG, the second-largest energy producer in the United States. NRG got most of its power from fossil fuels, but Crane - hired as CEO in 2003 as NRG emerged from bankruptcy - had invested heavily in alternative energy, loudly proclaiming the business benefits of being a leader on climate change. But by 2015, facing investor and board pressure, Crane was forced to spin off NRG's renewable assets, marking the end of his bold strategy.
In the midst of increasing press scrutiny of the bottled water industry's environmentally harmful practices, FIJI Water made a series of sustainability promises. The boldest of these was a pledge to go "carbon negative." The company said that not only would they offset or mitigate all of their carbon emissions, but would go further, making every purchase of their hip, luxury bottles a net benefit for the environment. The unusual methodology they used to calculate their environmental benefit drew skepticism, and FIJI executives needed to evaluate how to move forward with their sustainability agenda.
In the beginning of the 21st century, the European Union (the EU) had led the global fight against climate change with a wide array of policy measures. The EU's primary approach to climate policy had been taxation via the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), the first carbon cap-and-trade regulation. EU ETS was a market-based solution designed to reduce GHG emissions by setting an upper limit on domestic emissions. However, the effectiveness of EU ETS had been debated since its inception in 2005. Years later in July 2021, the EU proposed implementation of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), a carbon border tax intended to address business competition challenges plaguing EU ETS by establishing comparable carbon costs within EU borders for imports and local goods. Nevertheless, the CBAM proposal was also met with considerable skepticism. The potential enforcement of CBAM raised several questions for cement and steel producers around the world. First, what would be the impact on their strategies and financial performance? Second, what actions could they take in response? Stakeholders in other industries that relied on cement and steel to produce their own goods pondered the same questions. In addition, several questions emerged about the potential impact of CBAM on carbon emission reductions both in the EU and in other jurisdictions. Would CBAM be effective at reducing emissions and addressing emissions leakage? How would other countries respond to CBAM and would the response affect those countries' carbon emissions reduction efforts?