As part of its efforts to reduce the carbon footprint resulting from its operations, International Breweries Plc (IBPLC), a proud member of AB InBev, said it has adopted a substantive solar mix for its energy use in its Gateway Plant in Ogun State.
The plant, which is one of the biggest breweries in sub-Saharan Africa, uses energy mix as part of its Climate Action programmes and focuses on its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) agenda.
Meanwhile, stakeholders comprising regulatory authorities, government representatives, and community members have commended the plant during a recent tour of the plant.
Akintayo Oguntunde, manager of Gateway Plant, said that IBPLC has invested a lot of human and financial resources in its organisation across the country to run the business in a sustainable manner with minimal or no negative impact on the environment.
“Some of our company’s environmental efforts include the efficient treatment of our effluents, the use of biogas from our by-products as well as liquefied natural gas to power our boilers. On waste management, we demonstrate strict adherence to waste segregation, recycling of our bottles and by-product recycling. We also recently launched our eco-trucks where we use gas-powered delivery trucks with reduced carbon footprint,” Oguntunde said.
Speaking during the tour, Tony Agah, director of Brewery Operations at IBPLC, said the company’s focus on the environment is further demonstrated through the multi-layered structures it has on the ground at the plant as well as at the regional, zone and global levels.
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“We share operations’ best practices, and we invest in the best technology. Our structures are backed up with training to make sure the people running our environmental systems are competent,” he said.
Agah, who conducted the stakeholders around the company’s state-of-the-art Biological Treatment System (BTS) otherwise known as the Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP), said the company’s system enables it to treat all effluents coming from the brewery processes in line with regulatory standards.
He said the discharged waters from the brewery are treated to become non-toxic.
He thanked the regulatory stakeholders for the commendations, advisories and other comments received from the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) and the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency (OGEPA) teams that visited the brewery.
He promised that IBPLC will continue to deploy technology to back up its operations to continue to scale up on positive impact on the environment.
Highlighting the company’s commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Temitope Oguntokun, director of Legal and Corporate Affairs, said that one of the core values of the company globally is to ensure its operations bring benefits and prosperity to the communities where it operates.
“CSR and sustainability have always been at the core of IBPLC’s ethos because we thrive when our communities thrive,” he said.
Oguntokun said eight young entrepreneurs from the host communities have received a total grant of N11.6 million from its Kickstart entrepreneurship programme, in addition to business training and mentorship.
She added that, over time, the company had installed four boreholes in different parts of the community as part of its water stewardship to enhance water supply in the community and improve sanitation.
According to her, IBPLC also delivered a rural electrification/economy-boosting project to the Bara community and environs through the provision of a 300KVA ONAN oil-immersed step-down transformer, 415V overhead distribution line and other ancillaries.
Babatunde Olusesi Titus, vice chairman of Obafemi Owode Local Government, commended IBPLC for investing in the local government and the consistent support it has rendered to communities.
“You are doing well in employment and CSR activities. It pleases and amazes us as a local government to see what you have contributed to the community. We are delighted about your contributions and would like to explore more partnerships with International Breweries,” he said.
Olakunle Olalekan, a community leader and Asiwaju of Orile Imo, said the company has done a lot to empower the people of the community and also improve the facilities in the community.
“The presence of IBPLC has encouraged other companies to take the bold step in coming to invest in the community,” he said.
Kehinde Adeoso, general secretary of the Imo Descendants Association (IDA) said that International Breweries’ CSR projects have been a blessing to the community.
