French specialty materials group Arkema has won validation from SBTi Services for new climate targets for 2035 and for net zero by 2050, the company announced on 3 November 2026. Arkema says it is the first company validated under the new SBTi guidance dedicated to the chemical industry.
What Arkema has committed to
The validated net-zero target covers Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 emissions. Arkema aims to cut its absolute emissions by 90 percent by 2050 compared with 2019, and says it will prioritise reducing emissions, using neutralisation only for the remaining 10 percent of residual emissions, in line with SBTi criteria.
For the nearer term, the company has set new science-based targets for 2035, also validated by SBTi Services. It commits to reducing its absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 58.07 percent by 2035 from a 2019 base year, and its absolute Scope 3 emissions by 68.57 percent by 2035 from the same base year.
The detail inside the 2035 targets
Within the Scope 1 and 2 commitment, Arkema commits to reducing by 22.39 percent its absolute Scope 1 emissions from the production of non-primary chemicals, as defined by the SBTi Chemical Sector Pathways and Implementation Criteria V1.0, covering all of the group’s production activities. It also commits to reducing by 78.44 percent all remaining absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions.
Arkema says it has already achieved its 2030 targets through its decarbonisation initiatives, and that the new targets keep it on a 1.5°C trajectory in line with the Paris Agreement. The company says its climate plan is supported by a cumulative investment envelope of up to 400 million euros over the 2022-2035 period, intended notably to finance process improvement and energy efficiency projects.
Why validation matters
The Science Based Targets initiative is a corporate climate action organisation that helps companies and financial institutions set greenhouse gas reduction targets consistent with reaching net zero by 2050 at the latest. SBTi Services Limited, its wholly owned subsidiary, delivers target-validation services. Validation therefore tests a company’s numbers against sector guidance, rather than simply recording a self-declared pledge.
For the chemical industry, that test matters because emissions come from energy use, chemical processes and long value chains. A target that separates process emissions from other emissions, as Arkema’s does, shows where cuts must happen in factories and where they depend on suppliers and customers. Readers can follow that distinction in future company reporting against the 2019 baseline.
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FAKTA
- Announcement: 3 November 2026, Paris La Défense.
- Net zero by 2050: 90 percent absolute cut across Scopes 1, 2 and 3 versus 2019; neutralisation only for the residual 10 percent.
- 2035: Scope 1 and 2 down 58.07 percent; Scope 3 down 68.57 percent, both versus 2019.
- First company validated under the new SBTi guidance for the chemical industry, according to Arkema.
- Climate plan investment envelope: up to 400 million euros over 2022-2035, according to the company.
