Jakarta. Pulp and paper producer APRIL Group shared its sustainability commitment during the Think20 (T20) summit which was held on September 5- 6, as an effort of fostering collective action and tangible cooperation in climate-related investment.

The T20 is the official engagement group of G20 which brings together leading think tanks and research centers worldwide. It serves as the idea bank of the G20 and aims to provide research-based policy recommendations to G20 leaders.

Sihol Aritonang, the President Director of PT Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper (RAPP), the operating arm of APRIL, joined as one of the speakers from the private sector to share the company’s efforts in climate actions.

“Last year, we successfully installed 1 MW of solar panel installation and this year we are going to increase the capacity to 10 MW,” he said while explaining the progress of the company’s APRIL2030 sustainability commitment. “Currently, 87 percent of our energy consumption in our mill in Riau is derived from renewable energy,” said Sihol.

In November 2020, the company launched APRIL2030 — a decade-long sustainability agenda that focuses on delivering positive impacts on climate, nature, and people. APRIL2030 encompasses targets to achieve net zero carbon emissions from land use and aims to source 90 percent of mill energy needs from renewables and cleaner energy sources by 2030, among other science-based and tangible targets.

APRIL also ensures that there won’t be any loss of protected forest areas in its operation in Riau Province, in Sumatra, and guarantees measured protected forest areas, biodiversity, and ecosystems in the conservation and restoration areas. 

Currently, the company manages and restores a 150,000-hectare degraded peatland on the Kampar Peninsula and Padang Island in Sumatra under its flagship peatland ecosystem restoration program Restorasi Ekosistem Riau (RER). The RER is home to more than 800 species of wildlife, including the critically endangered Sumatran tiger.

“Key components of our thriving landscape called “Production-Protection” approach. The production area provides effective protection on the natural forest, and not only that, the production forest generates the required funding to fund the conservation,” Sihol explained.

APRIL underscored the importance of collaborating with other partners to implement the commitments. For example, commenced establishing a community conservation pilot project in partnership with five villages on peat landscapes, building on the trust established through the company’s Fire Free Village Program.

Protected areas range from 1,000-5,000 hectares and the project involves creating livelihood opportunities to ensure the economic viability of the program and relieve pressure on the landscape.

Under the guidance of the World Conservation Society, APRIL is also working to update its conservation plans for all 32 of our owned and supply partner estates as well as preparing key species management plans and developing strategies to address the illegal wildlife trade.

APRIL Group has also established a partnership with Science-Based Target Initiative (SBTi) and work hand in hand to set the target of emissions reduction on the basis of science in parallel with the criteria that SBTi has set.

“We believe that climate ambitions are ambitious and a single company cannot accomplish those ambitions alone. That is why we strike, we form a strategic partnership so we can elaborate to achieve common goals,” he said.