世界经济论坛-绿色公共采购：催化净零经济（英）-2022.1-33页_4mb

Summary of "Green Public Procurement: Catalysing the Net-Zero Economy"

Core Content

This white paper by the World Economic Forum and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) outlines the potential of green public procurement (GPP) to significantly contribute to global efforts to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. It emphasizes the critical role that governments can play as major consumers in driving decarbonization across industries and highlights the challenges and opportunities associated with implementing GPP.

Main Points

• Public Procurement's Impact on Emissions:
  Public procurement is directly or indirectly responsible for 15% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with 70% of these emissions stemming from just six key industries: defence and security, transport, waste management services, construction, industrial products, and utilities.

• Emissions Breakdown:

  • Scope 1 emissions (direct emissions from fossil fuel use in public transport and defence activities) account for ~20% of public procurement emissions.
  • Scope 2 emissions (indirect emissions from electricity purchase) account for ~12%.
  • Scope 3 emissions (upstream emissions from suppliers) account for ~68% of total emissions.

• Economic and Social Benefits:

  • Green public procurement could trigger $4 trillion in private sector investment by 2050 to reach net-zero.
  • It is projected to create around 3 million new jobs and boost global GDP by $6 trillion by 2050.
  • It could reduce the social cost of carbon by up to $930 billion annually by 2050 if all 15% of emissions are fully abated.

• Cost Implications:

  • The cost of green procurement is expected to increase by 3% to 6% globally.
  • 40% of procurement-related emissions can be abated at a cost of less than $15 per tonne of CO₂e.
  • The green premium is a key cost factor, but it is expected to decrease with scale and technological progress.

• Challenges:

  • Cost: Green procurement is more expensive in the short term.
  • Complexity: The decentralized nature of public procurement across OECD countries complicates strategy implementation.
  • Competing Priorities: Green procurement must compete with other budgetary priorities like health and education.
  • Poor Data Transparency: Lack of transparent emissions data hampers baseline setting, target definition, and progress tracking.

Key Information

• Global Spending on Public Procurement:
  Governments spend approximately $11 trillion annually on public procurement, which is 13% of global GDP. This spending power gives them significant influence over industries.

• Sector-Specific Influence:

  • Defence and security accounts for ~17% of public procurement emissions and ~15-20% of procurement spend.
  • Transport and waste management services account for ~12% of emissions each, but have higher cost impacts.
  • Construction and utilities also contribute significantly, with ~12% and ~8% of emissions respectively.

• Decarbonization Potential:
  By 2050, the green premium could increase public procurement costs by 3-6%, but this is a necessary investment to align with global climate goals.

Ten Steps to Greener Public Procurement

The paper proposes a 10-step framework to guide procurement officials in achieving green goals:

1. Create transparency in baselines and targets:

   • Collect and analyze data on emissions.
   • Identify high-emission suppliers.
   • Set common metrics and ambitious reduction targets.

2. Optimize products for greenhouse gas abatement across their life cycle:

   • Develop an abatement roadmap.
   • Consider cost, impact, and feasibility.

3. Define product and supplier standards:

   • Establish clear sustainability standards.
   • Evaluate and prioritize suppliers based on their progress toward emissions targets.

4. Develop the wider ecosystem and create buying groups:

   • Collaborate with industry coalitions to promote decarbonization.
   • Join buying groups to increase demand for low-carbon products.

5. Transform the procurement organization and align across agencies:

   • Realign leadership and responsibilities.
   • Improve communication and data systems to support decarbonization.

6. Set ambitious reduction targets for Scope 1-3 emissions:

   • Ensure procurement policies align with climate goals.

7. Specify product sustainability characteristics:

   • Integrate sustainability criteria into procurement specifications.

8. Design value chain/sourcing strategy for sustainability:

   • Focus on optimizing the entire value chain for emissions reduction.

9. Integrate emissions metrics into procurement standards:

   • Track supplier performance using emissions metrics.

10. Work with suppliers to address their emissions:

    • Collaborate with suppliers to reduce emissions across their operations.

Conclusion

Green public procurement is a powerful lever for achieving global net-zero goals. It can stimulate the green economy, reduce the social cost of carbon, and drive innovation across industries. While there are challenges such as increased costs and bureaucratic complexity, these can be overcome through strategic collaboration, transparency, and systemic change. The time to act is now, as the cost of inaction could be far greater in the long run.