Reducing our environmental footprint globally

Setting an ambition to achieve net zero by fiscal year FY45

Climate science is complex, but the results are clear - the planet is changing with global consequences. Promising renewable energy opportunities require bold action, transparency, and accountability.

We know a healthy society depends on a healthy environment, and vice versa. By reducing our carbon footprint and collaborating within our industry, we are investing in the health of our company and people, the communities we serve, and the planet.

Solar panel at a solar field that helps power the Medtronic Mounds View campus in Minnesota.

Our path to net carbon neutral operations by FY30 and net zero by FY45

We aim to achieve net carbon neutrality across our operations by FY30 by maximizing our use of renewable energy and minimizing our direct (our own buildings, transportation, and production-related activities) and indirect (purchased or consumed electricity or heat) carbon dioxide emissions.

Our goal is to eliminate our direct and indirect emissions (scopes 1, 2, and 3) across our operations and our entire value chain to zero by FY45.

Ten new electric air source heat pumps at the Medtronic Parkmore facility in Ireland.

How? By using less energy

We’re making our manufacturing and distribution sites more energy efficient by upgrading our equipment and improving our processes. This reduces our energy consumption and improves our operational efficiency. In FY24, we saved 18,000 MWh through more than 40 energy efficiency projects.

An example of this is our Medtronic Parkmore facility in Ireland, where we:

Replaced all-natural gas fired boilers with ten new electric air source heat pumps
Installed roof-mounted solar panels, energy-efficient equipment, smart controls and LED lighting
Removed approximately 2,300 tons of CO2 per year with help from the new heating system, which was 97% of the facility's carbon emissions in FY23
Reduced energy usage by 20% across the campus

Ten new electric air source heat pumps at the Medtronic Parkmore facility in Ireland.

How? By switching to clean energy

In addition to using less energy, we also reduced our fuel and natural gas use by transitioning to renewable electricity. We are producing our own on-site energy with 39 renewable (solar, wind, and aqua thermal) projects and 10 alternative energy (cogeneration, trigeneration and fuel cell) projects worldwide in FY24.

Our facility in Tolochenaz, Switzerland, launched its aquathermal renewable energy project in FY22, after 14 years of work. The project installed a series of underground pipes that pull water from nearby Lake Geneva to a nearby site where heat pumps convert energy from the water temperature to warm or cool the air in buildings across the campus. The water is then returned to the lake with no impact to the local ecosystem while simultaneously reducing CO2 emissions.

The result? We cut carbon emissions by 80% at our Switzerland campus — from 820 tons per year to approximately 150 tons per year.

How? By minimizing lost energy, capturing heat

Cogeneration, also known as combined heat and power, merges the production of usable heat and electricity into a single process that can substantially reduce carbon emissions and energy costs.

Since FY13, our Mirandola facility in Italy:

Used a high efficiency cogenerator to produce about 7.5 million kilowatt-hours per year (electricity, heating and cooling), enough to power a small community
Reduced carbon dioxide emissions by as much as 2,620 tons within 10 years

Check out our decarbonization roadmap for more on our plans to reach net zero.

Decarbonization Roadmap (.pdf)

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