JCDecaux becomes the first Out-of-Home Media company to join the RE100 initiative, reaffirming its commitment to the climate and renewable energies

JCDecaux SA (Euronext Paris: DEC), the number one outdoor advertising company worldwide, has joined RE100, a global leadership initiative for companies committed to 100% renewable electricity. This move underlines the company’s current objective of sourcing 100% of its electricity consumption from renewable electricity by 2022. The Group began buying green electricity as part of an ambitious policy rolled out in 2014. In 2018, it was already meeting 69% of its electricity needs with renewable electricity compared with 37% in 2015.

Coinciding with the Climate Week summit, which recently opened in New York, JCDecaux has restated its commitment to fighting global warming, becoming the first outdoor advertising group to join the RE100 initiative. Founded by (NGO), The Climate Group, in partnership with CDP (a not-for-profit organization which aim is to study the implications of climate change for the world's principal publicly traded companies), this initiative brings together businesses around the world to promote 100% renewable electricity. RE100 encourages businesses to work together, foster the exchange of best practices and create a new momentum driven by the leaders in each sector, with the aim of substantially increasing demand from businesses for renewable energies and to limit carbon emissions.

To promote economic growth while respecting people and the environment has long been the aim of the business model pursued by JCDecaux. Sustainable development and energy efficiency are driving the development of innovative new services that are ecological, aesthetically pleasing and highly functional. The Group also pioneered the development of self-service bikes, helping to bring about a major shift in public transport and increasing soft mobility in 57 cities worldwide.

Today, street furniture accounts for 80% of the energy consumed by JCDecaux.  Energy efficiency measures in the design and use of furniture, and the offset of carbon emissions are key components of Group strategy.

JCDecaux is committed to reducing the energy consumption of its analogue furniture by replacing existing lighting systems with LED lighting and smart lighting solutions. By changing the way lighting is used, such as moderating brightness or fitting motion sensors, these solutions improve the energy performance of the furniture by over 60%.
A selective strategy with a premium focus is implemented for JCDecaux digital street furniture. To ensure that the electricity consumption of its screens is precisely in line with their function and expected use, a strict criteria of quality and energy efficiency during selection is applied.
JCDecaux is also promoting vehicles of low environmental impact for its fleets, supplying employees with low-emission vehicles (electric LPG, hybrid, etc.) whenever possible.
Over the past ten years, JCDecaux has also developed the use of photovoltaic solar panels in its furniture to increase the use of renewable energies.

Helen Clarkson, CEO, The Climate Group, said: “We are thrilled to welcome JCDecaux to RE100 for Climate Week NYC – this is the time and place to show bold action on climate change. JCDecaux have already made good progress toward their ambitious goal of sourcing 100% renewable electricity by 2022. JCDecaux’s messages reach more than 800 million people on the planet every day, and this might be one of the most important to date.”

Jean-François Decaux, Chairman of the Executive Board and Co-CEO of JCDecaux, said: “To address the global warming challenge, JCDecaux is making active efforts to reduce its carbon emissions. From design to production and maintenance, we are committed to further reducing our CO2 emissions in both furniture and services. Our emissions were down 33% in 2018 compared with 2017 and have virtually halved since 2014. Our determination is also reflected in our stated aim of sourcing 100% of our electricity consumption from green electricity by 2022. As a member of RE100, we will be able to join forces with other actively committed companies. At the same time, we will send a strong message to our partner cities and advertisers on the ability of outdoor advertising in general, and JCDecaux OOH/DOOH media in particular, to keep pace with the major changes taking place in our society”.

As part of Climate Week, JCDecaux is displaying a poster by Danish artist, Per Arnoldi, at 40 of its New York street furniture sites. Entitled “Warning Global Warming”, the poster aims to raise public awareness concerning the threat of climate change. An animated version of the poster has been on display at 12 JCDecaux digital bus shelters near UN headquarters since September 16th, coinciding with the General Meeting between 17 and September 24th. JCDecaux is not only a committed company, it is also a responsible, powerful and efficient media firm, generating over 17 million views for this campaign and helping to raise awareness.

Jean-François Decaux also spoke about climate change and JCDecaux’s initiatives in a video available online: