• New Science Based Targets initiative pathways provide emissions cutting trajectories for ammonia, methanol, high-value chemicals and fertilizer-linked nitrous oxide.
• The framework offers sector-specific guidance for companies representing the world’s largest industrial energy consumer and the third-highest source of industrial emissions.
• Developed through extensive consultation, the pathways establish how quickly chemical manufacturers must reduce emissions to align with international climate goals.

A Roadmap for One of the World’s Most Carbon-Intensive Sectors

The Science Based Targets initiative has released a comprehensive suite of net-zero pathways for the global chemicals industry, offering manufacturers a clear set of trajectories for some of the sector’s most emission-intensive processes. The publication, which includes supporting criteria for implementation, is designed to give one of the world’s highest-emitting industrial sectors a defined route to transition in line with science-based climate goals.

The chemicals industry sits at the centre of modern manufacturing, supplying inputs for 95 percent of all products. That centrality brings enormous decarbonization potential: the sector is the largest industrial energy user and the third-largest source of industrial greenhouse gas emissions. The new framework aims to shift that profile by helping companies set targets aligned with both the Corporate Net-Zero Standard and the Corporate Near-Term Criteria.

Sector-Specific Pathways Designed for Practical Application

The Chemical Sector Pathways and Implementation Criteria contain a set of emissions trajectories covering core production routes and downstream use-phase impacts. These include pathways for ammonia, methanol and high-value chemicals, as well as guidance for nitrous oxide released during nitric acid production. Additional pathways address emissions from non-primary chemicals, reductions in fertilizer-related nitrous oxide during agricultural use, and the scale-up of alternative feedstocks to lower the sector’s overall carbon footprint.

By combining these pathways, companies can map out near-term and long-term decarbonisation strategies that reflect the realities of their assets, product portfolios and market exposure. The intention is to translate the diversity of chemical processes into a unified methodology that still respects operational nuances.

David Kennedy, Chief Executive Officer at the Science Based Targets initiative, said the new guidance reflects the sector’s strategic position in the global transition. “The chemicals sector is central in the transition to net-zero, given its fundamental role in the global economy. Our new criteria reflects common underpinnings in the diverse range of processes used in the sector, expressing these in pathways for chemical manufacturers to act decisively on net-zero—unlocking innovation, efficiency, and long-term business value.”

Developed Through Broad Consultation and Technical Review

The initiative spent extensive time shaping the criteria, drawing on two rounds of public consultation, pilot testing with companies, and input from an Expert Advisory Group. The development process incorporated the latest climate science and modelling to determine how quickly emissions must decline across different production routes if the sector is to align with global temperature goals.

Alberto Carrillo Pineda, Chief Technical Officer at the Science Based Targets initiative, said the work reflects months of technical development: “Developing this ambitious Criteria has involved extensive research, consultation, and expert input–all aimed at driving meaningful transformation in the chemicals sector. Grounded in the latest science, it defines specific pathways outlining how much and how quickly companies must reduce emissions to align with international climate goals. By using these pathways, companies can align their climate strategies and confidently navigate through the net-zero transformation.”

The initiative designed the structure to be streamlined, aiming to ease the target-setting process for companies with complex, energy-intensive value chains. The guidance also helps investors, lenders and supply-chain partners understand the emissions-reduction expectations for a sector that anchors global manufacturing.

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What Executives and Investors Should Watch

The release expands the tools available to a sector facing rising scrutiny from regulators and capital markets. Chemicals companies sit upstream in numerous value chains, giving their decarbonisation progress direct implications for consumer goods, construction, automotive, agriculture and electronics. The new pathways also come at a time when governments are tightening expectations for industrial emissions cuts, green hydrogen adoption and fertilizer-related nitrous oxide reduction.

For investors, the guidance provides a clearer benchmark for assessing whether corporate transition plans align with science-based thresholds. It also signals where technology development and capital expenditure may concentrate over the coming decade, from low-carbon ammonia to alternative feedstocks and process redesign.

A Framework With Global Implications

The chemicals industry’s climate trajectory has outsized consequences for energy demand, global emissions and supply-chain resilience. By setting out detailed pathways grounded in science, the SBTi aims to give manufacturers the tools to accelerate decarbonisation and to offer financial markets a more transparent view of what credible transition planning looks like.

As more companies adopt these pathways, the framework is expected to influence industrial policy debates and investment strategies across regions. In a sector that touches nearly every part of the global economy, the pace at which these targets are implemented will shape the wider trajectory of industrial net-zero efforts.

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