Coherent Issues Its ESG Report 2023 and Sets a Net Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions Target of FY2040

PITTSBURGH, Dec. 20, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – Coherent Corp. (NYSE: COHR), a leader in materials, networking, and lasers, today published its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Report 2023 and announced that it has set a net-zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions target of FY2040. The ESG Report 2023 is available on the Coherent website at this link.

“By establishing a net-zero target for Coherent, we reached a significant new ESG milestone,” said Dr. Vincent D. Mattera, Jr., Chair and CEO. “It not only represents the great strides we’ve made in the past year, but it also elevates and makes transparent our level of commitment to create long-term value for all our stakeholders through ESG programs that are sustainable, inclusive, principled, and innovative.”

Highlights from the ESG Report 2023 include:

• Environment: In addition to establishing a net-zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions target of FY2040, the company is now obtaining >50% of its global energy needs from renewable energy sources. This represents over 400,000 MWh of renewable energy, mitigating more than 175,000 metric tons of CO₂ emissions annually.
  
• People: The company streamlined its talent management processes to improve the experience for both managers and employees; expanded its diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts; and harmonized practices and policies following the July 2022 acquisition of the former Coherent, Inc.
  
• Governance: Coherent confirmed its commitment to comply with the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) Code of Conduct and launched a new ESG webpage with links to its ESG Report and related policies. Over two dozen ESG-related policies have been updated and standardized globally, and are grounded in the principles of the RBA, the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the International Labor Organization (ILO).
  
• Products: Coherent’s silicon carbide (SiC) substrates and the SiC metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) fabricated on them will further enable customers to bring to market ever-more efficient high-performance electric vehicles, industrial motors, and renewable energy systems.
  
• Sustainable Procurement: Coherent issued a Supplier ESG Standards statement, adopted the RBA Code of Conduct as its supplier code of conduct, and issued an updated Supplier Diversity statement. The company also launched a project to develop a supply chain decarbonization program.

As stated in the report, Coherent considers that all its employees and entire supply chain contribute to the company’s ESG performance. The company supports standardization of ESG reporting, and its report is indexed according to the SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board) framework. Coherent reports its GHG emissions and water usage publicly through CDP and supports its customers’ requests for ESG information through standard surveys such as those from EcoVadis and RBA. Management of Coherent is overseen by a highly qualified and diverse Board of Directors. The company’s sustainability vision is guided at the highest levels of the Board by its Environmental, Social, and Governance Committee.