Lenzing Earns Above Average Ratings from MSCI and Higg
As part of Lenzing Group’s work to advance sustainability, we measure our own progress internally, but there is significant value in having our environmental impact assessed by third parties.
For the first time, Lenzing participated in the Sustainable Apparel Coalition’s (SAC) Higg Facility Environmental Module (FEM) assessment. All of our facilities aside from Brazil and Thailand were assessed by November 2023, and Brazil and Thailand will be evaluated in 2024. For those sites already measured, the scores were between 70 and 95 percent. The industry average for the more than 20,000 participating companies is far lower, under 50 percent.
Lenzing is a founding member of the SAC, and the Higg Material Sustainability Index has previously shown that our TENCEL™ Lyocell fibers have a footprint that is about 50 percent smaller than generic lyocell.
In addition to our strong Higg FEM assessment, Lenzing has also received an AA score from the rating agency MSCI. This is the third time we have placed at an AA, which categorizes us as “leaders” and puts us in the top 8 percent among our peers. MSCI recognized our initiatives including water stewardship and work to prevent the release of toxic pollutants. It also awarded us the AA for our corporate governance.
The MSCI rating looks at companies’ abilities to manage financial risks and opportunities related to ESG. Lenzing has a bonded loan of 500 million euros that is tied to its ESG performance, which it placed in 2019. This positive rating from MSCI will allow the company to reduce its interest expense, and Lenzing will be donating the resulting savings.
“I am proud that Lenzing is among the top 8 percent of the world’s most sustainable companies,” said Stephan Sielaff, CEO of the Lenzing Group. “At Lenzing, we are working hard to make our industries even more sustainable and to drive the transformation of the textile business model from a linear to a circular economy model. This approach is firmly anchored in our strategy and corporate values. I am therefore particularly pleased about the MSCI rating and that we as the Lenzing Group have also achieved excellent results in the SAC Higgs FEM.”
In addition to these ratings, Lenzing was awarded platinum status in EcoVadis’ CSR rating for the third time in 2023, with a score in the top 1 percent of the 100,000 companies assessed. The Canopy Hot Button rankings published at the end of 2023 also named Lenzing as a leader in CanopyStyle commitments among man-made cellulosic fiber producers. Lenzing earned a dark green shirt, with the second highest score among its peers.