Air emissions

ORLEN Group GHG emissions for 2019-2022

The calculations are made in accordance with the GHG Protocol guidelines using the oil & gas industry guidelines.¹ Historical data and in some cases estimations were used to determine the Scope 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions.

For Scope 1, in case of direct emissions for installations covered by emissions trading systems, emission values calculated and declared under the CO2 emission allowances." data-popup>EU ETS and TIER are reported in order to maintain the reporting consistency.

In Scope 2, calculations were made using two methods: location-based and market-based. In the case of the location-based method, country-specific emission factors were used, while in the case of the market-based method, indicators published by specific retailers were used. If the seller did not publish the indicator, the average indicator for the country was adopted (as in the location-based method).

Types of greenhouse gases included in the calculation: CO₂, N₂O, CH₄, HFC.

GHG emissions are consolidated under operational control, including:

• Rafineria Gdańska Sp. z o.o., for which ORLEN is not the operating control entity, but is included in ORLEN S.A.'s financial books and reports.

Organizational boundaries of reported GHG emissions:

• ORLEN Group companies including companies of the former Lotos Group.
• Companies of the former PGNiG Group are not included. The GHG emissions of the former PGNiG Group companies is being calculated. The emissions for the ORLEN Group including the former PGNiG Group companies will be published in December 2023 at the latest.

GHG emission calculations were performed for 2022. The base year (2019) and 2020-2021 were recalculated due to the inclusion of the former LOTOS Group companies within the organizational boundaries of the ORLEN Group. Recalculations were made on the basis of available data. Before the consolidation, Rafineria Gdańska, as the legal successor of LOTOS Asfalt and Rafineria Gdańska, was unable to provide all Scope 3 data for 2019-2021. The calculations were carried out in Scope 1, 2 and 3.

¹Compendium of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Methodologies for the Natural Gas and Oil Industry edited by API (American Petroleum Institute) 2^nd edition, Petroleum industry guidelines for reporting greenhouse gas emissions edited by IPIECA, API, IOGP 2^nd edition.

Greenhouse gas emissions at ORLEN³

ORLEN’s greenhouse gas emissions totalled 8,319,879 Mg, or 8,321,593 Mg CO₂e. The data is presented in the table below.

CO₂ emissions within the EU ETS

Air emissions

Management of material topic: air emissions

Air emissions are monitored through periodic and continuous measurements, so that compliance with emission limits defined in the relevant environmental permits is controlled on an ongoing basis. Emissions parameters are monitored by accredited laboratories using reference methodologies. Substances accounting for the largest percentage of total air emissions from the ORLEN Group’s installations include: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and dioxide, as well as particulate matter. They are generated mainly from the combustion of fuels to produce electricity and heat, as well as in the refining and chemical processes. There are also emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other emissions typical of industrial processes, including persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs).

Nitrogen oxides (NOX), sulfur oxides (SOX), and other significant air emissions

In 2022, the ORLEN Group’s total air emissions, including of carbon dioxide, were in excess of 20.2 million Mg.

The ORLEN Group’s estimated air emissions of SO₂, NOx, CO and particulate matter in 2022 totalled nearly 41 thousand Mg, while CO₂ emissions were over 20 million Mg (mainly emissions from EU ETS installations).

Air emissions of all ORLEN Group companies broken down by type of substance [in tonnes] are provided in the table below.

Following incorporation of the former PGNiG Group companies into the ORLEN Group, a new business segment, Gas, was identified in 2022.

Segment emissions data is provided in the table below.

Other substance emissions from ORLEN Group companies’ installations include volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which amounted to 10,559 Mg in 2022. Persistent organic pollutant emissions totalled 0.04 Mg, and hazardous air pollutant emissions amounted to 780.3 Mg.

For comparison, the table below shows full-year 2022 VOC, POP and HAP emissions data for the former PGNiG Group and LOTOS Group companies only.

GHG reductions
Steps will be taken to report the indicator in future years.