Pioneering decarbonization: Market transformation and Honeywell’s drive toward energy transition

Honeywell has been innovating for over 100 years. It is now creating what's next. Its ready-now technologies are helping companies globally meet their sustainability commitments.

Vimal Kapur, Chief Executive Office, Honeywell, welcomed the audience at the Honeywell conference held in Chicago, USA. We are helping the aviation industry decarbonize. In building technologies, imagine human-centric buildings that are more sustainable and provide better comfort. We are also leaders in hydrogen, energy storage, etc.

Innovation in healthcare can bind technologies and optimize processes to deliver adoption faster than ever before. Life sciences solutions, technologies and research improve the manufacturing quality and efficiency. Logistics and warehouse automation play an integral role in receiving and storage, picking, packing and shipping. Utility solutions and technologies help reduce CO2 emissions, increase the energy grid’s lifetime and foster energy equity. We are creating a more sustainable future for customers and you.

Gavin Towler, Chief Sustainability Officer, Honeywell UOP LLC, a Honeywell company, said sustainability is the biggest challenge for us as species. We have had climate disasters this year. Sustainability imperative is accelerating on a global scale. Companies know that they need to act. But, nobody can do this alone! 55% of global 200 companies established a public target date for partial or total elimination of GHG emissions. 90% of executives report that investments in sustainability is increasing, and driving business transformation.

Honeywell creates an advanced software-industrial environment with a lean culture, not just a series of activities. It believes in quality, delivery, inventory, and cost. Can the same tools drive an organizational culture around sustainability? Sustainability has become a critical operational characteristic. We have 6,300 projects ongoing, with total annualized savings worth $110 million. We have project groups, such as lighting upgrades, compressed air and gas upgrades, VDFs with over 100 projects, HVAC system modifications, control system upgrades and replacements, etc. We have reduced CO2 emissions by over 90% since 2004. Energy efficiency has improved by 70% since 2004. There have been ~6,300 sustainability projects since 2004. In 2022, we have had continued enhancement of ESG disclosures, and remain committed to SBTI.

For the future, Honeywell has a path to carbon neutrality. Leading 10-10-10 goals by 2024 include reducing Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions intensity by an additional 10% from 2018 levels. 2030 commitment to Department of Energy's better climate challenge, and Scope 1 and 2 carbon neutrality commitment. We are extending carbon reduction target to include Scope 3 emissions.

We also have ESG disclosure of performance, commitments, and products. Transparency across ESG landscape cover greenhouse gas, energy efficiency, water security, conflict materials, responsible remediation, etc.

Honeywell has a large commitment to ESG. It covers multiple areas like bio-sourced materials, bio-derived plastics, plastics recycling, asset life extension, biofuels, hydrogen, renewable power, distributed generation, energy management services, energy optimization, energy storage, fleet electrification and smart logistics, aircraft fuel efficiency, flight management, predictive maintenance, GHG reduction, high GWP emissions monitoring and reduction, healthy building solutions, warehouse automation, command and control, flight safety, healthy air travel, infrastructure security, patient care, healthcare pharmaceuticals, cyber security, real-time tracking and reporting, measurement systems, satellite reliance, etc. Over 60% of new product R&D activity is directed towards ESG-oriented outcomes. We are innovating to solve the world's toughest ESG challenges.

In a quarterly survey of ~750 CSOs and similar on sustainability sentiments, the Q3-2023 key findings were: sustainability goals remain the top corporate initiative -- 16% higher than digital transformation initiatives. Approximately 80% of global manufacturing and energy companies say sustainability is their most important initiative for next six months. Investments are also increasing. 86% of organizations plan to increase their investments in ES initiatives for the coming 12 months. Budget increases planned in four key areas: energy evolution and efficiency, emissions reduction, pollution prevention and circularity/recycling. 93% of the organizations have a formal plan for reporting on progress made in meeting sustainability goals. Meeting Paris Accord goals requires decarbonization by 2060.

We now have to electrify most of the things, and move those that can't be electrified to newer solutions. The challenge is to have global GHG abatement cost curve beyond business as usual. Governments also need to have subsidies in place, to assist.

There are two visions of the future -- high-energy intensity, and low-energy intensity. High-energy intensity will reach 39.6 TWe / 4Gt CO2eq by 2050. Low-energy intensity will reach 27.6 TWe / 1.2 Gt CO2eq by 2050. The world will need more energy, as people move to large cities, and have purchasing power. We need to decarbonize the existing energy from gas, coal, and oil, and move to wind, solar, and nuclear.

Honeywell has developed sustainable aviation products. There are sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), hydrogen fuel cells, electric power, generators and turbogenerators, and electric propulsion. Carbon footprint of flight was reduced by 60-80% depending on feed source. We have HON in LRIP for ISR drones, and 3-4X range of batteries with zero emissions. The Honeywell MW class generator was first product to win award in 2022, and ground hardware in 2023. Future apps for electric and hybrid-electric aircraft are to follow. HON turbogenerator gives “Flying Whale” 10% of the emissions of a helicopter for the same mission. EVTOL urban air mobility has one-third to one-half lower emissions than traditional automotive transport.

Honeywell offers sustainable industrial solutions. These are across renewable fuels, energy storage and distribution, with flow batteries and renewable distributed assets, plastic circular economy, hydrogen economy, and carbon capture and emissions monitoring. 40 ecofining units have been licensed to produce renewable jet (SAF) and diesel. 450MWh energy storage solutions are already deployed or in project development. UpCycle has 72% lower lifecycle GHG emissions, compared to incinerating waste plastic. The world’s largest blue hydrogen plant will use Honeywell technology to capture 98% of CO2eq emissions. Honeywell carbon capture technologies help customers capture 15 million t/y of CO2.

40 Ecofining units have been licensed to produce renewable jet (SAF) and diesel. 450 MWh has been deployed or in project development. UpCycle has 72% lower lifecycle GHG emissions compared to incinerating waste plastic. The world’s largest blue hydrogen plant will use Honeywell technology to capture 98% of CO2eq emissions. Honeywell carbon capture technologies help customers capture 15 million t/y of CO2.

Successful projects

Next, he talked about some projects. Honeywell is helping the Sydney Opera House achieve a Six Green Star rating from GBCA. In 2021, the Sydney Opera House welcomed Honeywell as its first Global Goals partner, collaborating on initiatives to become climate-positive by 2030. Building operations are tailored to the unique requirements of the UNESCO heritage listed performing arts center. Using the Honeywell Building Management System, the building team can more effectively monitor and control systems to support peak performance, which has helped enable a 20% reduction in energy use, and a 30% reduction in water consumption.

Honeywell also surveyed 150 government buildings in Port St. Lucie (PSL), Florida’s 9th largest city, and developed a 15-year energy savings performance contract guaranteeing $17M in savings. Honeywell will help PSL cut electricity use by almost 5.4 million kilowatt-hours per year — enough to power 460 homes.

In a global first for the maritime industry, Port Esbjerg and Honeywell are working together to help the Danish port reduce CO2 emissions by 70% by 2030. Using a Honeywell energy management system, Port Esbjerg can monitor ships’ energy use and optimize the delivery of shore-to-ship power, allowing docked vessels to run on electricity from offshore wind turbines, instead of using on-board diesel generators, and reducing CO2, SOx and NOx emissions, as well as reducing noise pollution.

Supermarkets across Europe are installing Honeywell Solstice L40X (R-455A) refrigerant, a low-global warming potential, energy efficient refrigerant for cold room storage. 

At the MD Discount Store in San Giovanni in Persiceto, Italy, Honeywell Solstice L40X is projected to support a lifetime cost savings of approximately €260,000 and 25% lower lifetime emissions compared with carbon dioxide as a refrigerant for that store alone. An E.Leclerc storefront in Moissac, France, will use Honeywell’s Solstice L40X (R-455A) refrigerant for cold room storage. Honeywell Solstice L40X (R-455A) enables self-contained freezer systems to provide energy efficiency improvements of 6% over 24 hours, compared with R-404A.

Many patients suffering from COPD and asthma are currently treated using pressurized metered dose inhalers (pMDIs) that can contribute to the global carbon footprint of respiratory care. AstraZeneca, a global leader in treatment of respiratory diseases, is working to incorporate Honeywell's Solstice Air (HFO-1234ze cGMP) technology as a medical propellant.

The next-generation respiratory inhalers will use around one global warming potential (GWP) propellants to treat asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It will reduce the GHG emissions of the pMDIs 99.9% when compared to current inhaler propellants. Solstice Air is a non-flammable, near-zero GWP, non-ozone-depleting, volatile organic compound (VOC)-exempt (per US EPA and CARB) propellant in clinical development today for pMDIs.

ExxonMobil will deploy Honeywell’s CO2 Fractionation and Hydrogen Purification System at its integrated refinery complex in Baytown, Texas, enabling a 30% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions of the site. Honeywell’s technology is expected to enable ExxonMobil to capture about 7 million tons of CO2 per year, equivalent to the annual emissions of 1.5 million cars. ExxonMobil’s facility is expected to be the largest low-carbon hydrogen project in the world at planned startup. 98% of the CO2eq emissions from the plant will also be captured.

bp will use Honeywell Ecofining technology for five new sustainable aviation fuel projects across Cherry Point Refinery, USA, Rotterdam Refinery, Netherlands, Lingen Refinery, Germany, Castellon Refinery, Spain, and Kwinana Oil Refinery, Australia.

Operating as an Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) solution, Honeywell’s Flight Efficiency offering provides airlines with the most advanced data management and analytics platform to streamline flight efficiency. British Airways flew a test flight using Honeywell Flight Efficiency to combine reduced energy taxi out (RETO), optimized lateral route planning, low power landing, and reduced energy taxi in (RETI).

Honeywell has technologies to address ~50% of global GHG emissions.