Vistra Releases Comprehensive Review of Company Climate Strategy
Climate change is a defining issue of our time, impacting all global citizens, industries, and nations and it must be addressed collectively. As an integrated retail electricity provider and producer of electric power, Vistra has been committed to combating climate change through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from our business activities. In the last five years, Vistra has transitioned our generation portfolio from one that was largely coal to one that is predominately natural gas-fueled while also operating our first solar + storage facility, developing the largest battery energy storage facility of its kind in the world, and launching our zero-carbon portfolio, Vistra Zero. Vistra expects to continue this strategy over the next 10 years with additional coal retirements and meaningful investments in renewables and batteries.
To provide further transparency into Vistra’s risk assessment and long-term business strategy, Vistra is publishing this Climate Report according to the guidance set forth by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). Key takeaways from the report include:
- An update to our GHG emissions reduction targets:
- Goal to achieve a 60% reduction in CO2 equivalent emissions by 2030, as compared to a 2010 baseline, an increase of nearly 20% from Vistra’s prior 2030 emissions reduction target.
- Long-term objective to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
- In management’s view, our climate scenario analysis found that climate change opportunities outweigh climate-related risks, with electricity demand expected to increase in the next 10 to 30 years as a result of the electrification of the economy.
- Vistra’s strategy is expected to be resilient under various climate scenarios.
- Sustainability and Risk Committee of Vistra’s board of directors oversees climate-related risks and opportunities (including those related to GHG reductions), as well as monitors environmental performance.
- Vistra’s strategy to achieve emissions reduction targets and ensure the long-term sustainability of our business includes a transformation of our portfolio, with approximately 6,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable investments along with approximately 7,000 MW of coal retirements expected over the next 10 years.
- Most climate scenarios forecast the utilization of natural gas resources will increase for reliability purposes in the U.S. as renewable penetration increases; Vistra’s fleet of low-cost, efficient, and relatively lower-emitting natural gas generating assets will be critical resources to maintain the reliability and affordability of electricity in the U.S. for the next several decades; in addition, as hydrogen technology advances Vistra’s gas fleet may be able to be retrofitted to use hydrogen as a fuel.
- Vistra’s established risk management process evaluates climate-related risks for their potential severity and likelihood of occurrence over different time horizons.
