ALIA unveils plans for Product Carbon Footprint label

The 2024 Asian Lubricants Industry Association (ALIA) Annual Meeting kicked off on March 5 at the Intercontinental Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, drawing participants from across the lubricants industry for networking, collaboration, and strategic planning.

ALIA Chair Charlotte Kehoe set the tone by outlining the association’s key priorities, emphasising a transition from informing members to influencing stakeholders on a broader scale. At the forefront of their agenda is strengthening ALIA’s voice in Asia and globally, advocating positions across industry and relevant government bodies. Kehoe also underscored the importance of evolving outreach efforts to include end-users and consumers. Notably, ALIA will host the first-ever lubricants industry exhibition in Southeast Asia from September 9-11, 2024, at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in collaboration with F&L Asia Ltd.

A focal point of yesterday’s meeting was Eric Holthusen’s presentation on the proposed ALIA Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) Label during the ALIA Member-to-Member Sharing Session. Holthusen, formerly chief technology officer at Petronas Lubricants International until his retirement in August 2022, outlined ALIA’s plans to introduce, administer, and oversee the label’s governance. He highlighted the growing significance of carbon data, citing increasing consumer awareness of product sustainability and the expectation among B2B customers for environmental performance data.

Although legislation surrounding carbon footprinting in Asia is still in its infancy, Holthusen stressed the need to anticipate future trends and take proactive measures as an industry to define how to measure and calculate carbon footprints for products –rather than being told how to do it by a third party.

Holthusen also welcomed the increasing availability of primary carbon data from many suppliers in the lubricants industry, including additive and base oil suppliers, providing a solid foundation for accurate PCF calculations.

While ALIA is sharing its intention at this stage, Holthusen expressed confidence that—given support from ALIA members—the label could be ready for implementation in Q4 2024. He underscored the importance of swiftly making stakeholders comfortable with PCF calculations.