Seven Group Holdings (SGH) is strengthening its sustainability strategy through emissions reduction, renewable electricity, alternative fuels, circular economy programs, workplace safety and workforce diversity across WesTrac, Boral and Coates.
The SGH Annual Report 2025 shows the Australian industrial group is increasingly linking environmental, social and governance commitments with measurable operational results. Its sustainability framework is structured around four pillars: People, Circular Economy, Local Operations and Climate Resilience.
The framework covers 10 material ESG issues and aligns with more than 20 United Nations Sustainable Development Goal indicators across 12 of the 17 SDGs.
SGH Sets Net-Zero Ambition for 2050
SGH has set an ambition to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. The group also aims to support the Paris Agreement objective of limiting the increase in global temperatures to below 2 degrees Celsius.
The report does not establish a group-wide 2040 net-zero target. Its stated ambition is net zero by 2050.
SGH has introduced interim emissions-intensity targets for its three major industrial businesses. Boral is targeting a 30 percent reduction in Scope 1 and Scope 2 carbon intensity by FY2030 from an FY2020 baseline. WesTrac and Coates are each targeting a 40 percent reduction over the same period.
Coates has already delivered a 41 percent reduction in emissions intensity from FY2020, reaching its FY2030 target five years early.
SGH Scope 1 and Scope 2 Emissions Reach 1.428 Million Tonnes
SGH reported Scope 1 emissions of 1.170 million tonnes of CO2e in FY2025. Scope 2 emissions reached 258,000 tonnes, taking combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions to 1.428 million tonnes of CO2e.
Total energy consumption across the group was 9,825 terajoules.
The reported footprint includes SGH’s major subsidiaries and other controlled entities, including SGH Energy, Sitech, Allight and Hushpak.
SGH did not disclose a consolidated Scope 3 emissions total. WesTrac is working with suppliers and customers to assess, measure and report its value-chain emissions.
SGH also incorporates climate-transition risks and carbon-pricing scenarios into longer-term business planning. Its climate assessment covers 12 Australian regions where WesTrac and Coates operate.
The modelling indicated that seven of the 12 regions could experience increases of at least 50 percent in extreme rainfall events by 2050. Five regions could face increases of at least 50 percent in bushfire hazards, while two could experience increases of at least 50 percent in extreme-heat events.
Boral Cuts Emissions to 1.388 Million Tonnes
Boral accounted for most of SGH’s operational carbon footprint, but its emissions and energy consumption declined substantially during FY2025.
Boral’s Scope 1 emissions fell to 1,148,271 tonnes of CO2e, from 1,278,488 tonnes in FY2024 and 1,343,807 tonnes in FY2023.
Scope 2 emissions decreased to 240,079 tonnes, compared with 259,519 tonnes in FY2024 and 273,828 tonnes in FY2023.
Combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions declined to 1,388,350 tonnes of CO2e, from 1,538,007 tonnes in FY2024 and 1,617,635 tonnes in FY2023. This represents an operational emissions reduction of approximately 9.7 percent year on year and 14.2 percent over two years.
Boral’s energy consumption decreased to 9,399,510 gigajoules, from 10,145,049 gigajoules in FY2024 and 10,484,781 gigajoules in FY2023.
Boral Expands Renewable Electricity and Alternative Fuels
Boral has started receiving renewable electricity through a solar power purchase agreement capable of supplying up to 60 gigawatt-hours annually.
The company is also reducing its dependence on coal in cement manufacturing. Its long-term target is to obtain 60 percent of cement-kiln thermal energy from alternative fuels.
During an FY2025 trial, Boral achieved an alternative-fuel replacement rate of approximately 50 percent, up from 30 percent in FY2024. Following the trial, the company is prioritising infrastructure capable of sustaining a replacement level of at least 45 percent.
Boral used approximately 112 kilotonnes of waste-derived lower-carbon fuels during FY2025, compared with 72 kilotonnes in the previous year. These fuels included construction wood waste and end-of-life tyres that might otherwise have been sent to landfill.
The company received AUD 24.5 million in Australian government funding for a kiln-feed optimisation project at its Berrima Cement Works. The project is designed to increase alternative raw materials in kiln feed from 9 percent to 23 percent, reducing limestone consumption and associated process emissions.
Lower-Carbon Concrete Reaches 30 Percent of Boral Sales
Lower-carbon concrete represented approximately 30 percent of Boral’s concrete sales volume during FY2025.
Boral achieved cement-replacement rates of up to 70 percent in certain applications, compared with the previous 50 percent replacement ratio for its standard lower-carbon products.
The company also commissioned a carbon capture, utilisation and storage demonstration plant at Berrima to study concrete recarbonation. Research cited by Boral estimates that concrete could reabsorb an amount equivalent to between 20 percent and 55 percent of the process emissions generated during cement production.
Boral increased the volume of recycled materials used at its operations by 8 percent and processed more than 2.5 million tonnes of material during the year.
WesTrac Reduces Scope 1 and Scope 2 Emissions 7.4 Percent
WesTrac achieved a 7.4 percent reduction in combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions during FY2025.
Scope 1 emissions declined to 9,270 tonnes of CO2e, from 10,483 tonnes in FY2024. Scope 2 emissions fell to 14,438 tonnes, compared with 15,115 tonnes.
Combined emissions decreased to 23,707 tonnes of CO2e, from 25,598 tonnes in FY2024. However, the FY2025 total remained close to the 23,920 tonnes reported in FY2023.
WesTrac consumed 221,784 gigajoules of energy, down from 238,165 gigajoules in FY2024 but slightly above the 221,312 gigajoules consumed in FY2023.
WesTrac Commissions 1,663-Kilowatt Solar System
WesTrac commissioned a 1,663-kilowatt solar photovoltaic installation at Tomago in New South Wales. This is equivalent to approximately 1.7 megawatts, not 1.7 gigawatts.
Around 88 percent of its estimated annual solar production is expected to be consumed at the site. The annual production figure is stated as 2.3 megawatt-hours in the report, although that unit appears unusually low for a solar system of this capacity.
WesTrac is also supporting the electrification of mining equipment. Its Australian electrification unit assembled two Caterpillar 793XE battery-electric trucks.
The business’s circular economy activities included supplying 80,457 remanufactured parts, completing 14,876 component rebuilds and rebuilding 353 machines. These programs extend the useful life of industrial assets and reduce demand for newly manufactured components.
Coates Cuts Operational Emissions 10 Percent
Coates reduced its combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by approximately 10 percent during FY2025.
Scope 1 emissions declined to 10,738 tonnes of CO2e, from 11,837 tonnes in FY2024 and 12,713 tonnes in FY2023.
Scope 2 emissions decreased to 3,443 tonnes, compared with 4,000 tonnes in FY2024 and 4,736 tonnes in FY2023.
Combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions fell to 14,181 tonnes of CO2e, from 15,837 tonnes in FY2024 and 17,449 tonnes in FY2023. The FY2025 total was approximately 18.7 percent lower than in FY2023.
Energy consumption dropped to 179,837 gigajoules, from 197,806 gigajoules in FY2024 and 214,078 gigajoules in FY2023. This represents a reduction of approximately 16 percent over two years.
Coates Expands Solar Power and Low-Emission Vehicles
Coates reduced grid-electricity consumption by 16 percent year on year as it expanded rooftop solar power and introduced pilot battery energy-storage systems.
Solar installations now operate at more than 25 percent of the company’s 145 branches. This equates to more than 36 locations. Another disclosure indicates that 26 branches had systems comprising 2,297 solar panels with 1.1 megawatts of combined capacity, suggesting the broader figure may include different rollout stages or reporting boundaries.
The annual report states that the rooftop solar program reduced grid-electricity consumption by approximately 1.1 GW and avoided around 740 tonnes of Scope 2 emissions annually. The electricity-reduction unit is reproduced as reported.
Coates also cut liquid-fuel consumption in its light-vehicle fleet by 10 percent, avoiding approximately 1,000 tonnes of emissions. It rationalised the fleet by around 20 percent and increased the proportion of low-emission vehicles to 3 percent.
The company supplied hybrid electricity-generation equipment for 9,600 hire days at off-grid and remote projects during FY2025.
Coates’ AUD 1.85 billion hire fleet underwent more than 500,000 maintenance events during the year, extending equipment life and supporting circular use of its assets. The business also continued recycling materials such as heavy metals and plastic safety barriers.
SGH Improves Workplace Safety but Reports Two Fatalities
SGH’s industrial businesses improved their principal workplace injury indicators during FY2025.
The rolling 12-month Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate declined by 38 percent to 0.8. The Total Recordable Injury Frequency Rate fell by 31 percent to 3.1.
Despite the improvements, SGH reported two fatalities during the period: one involving a Boral employee and another involving a Coates transport contractor. The incidents highlight the continuing importance of safety leadership, risk identification and preventative operational controls.
Female Workforce Participation Reaches 19 Percent
Female participation across SGH’s industrial workforce reached 19 percent, moving toward the group’s long-term aspiration of 25 percent.
Coates recorded female workforce participation of 24.7 percent following targeted recruitment and employment initiatives. This places the business close to SGH’s broader 25 percent objective.
SGH Connects Sustainability With Operational Resilience
SGH’s FY2025 sustainability performance demonstrates the scale of the decarbonisation challenge across energy-intensive industrial businesses.
The group still generated 1.428 million tonnes of combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and consumed 9,825 terajoules of energy. However, Boral’s 9.7 percent annual emissions reduction, WesTrac’s 7.4 percent decrease and Coates’ approximately 10 percent reduction indicate measurable operational progress.
Boral is replacing coal with waste-derived fuels, increasing renewable-electricity procurement and developing lower-carbon concrete. WesTrac is expanding solar power, remanufacturing and mining electrification, while Coates is using rooftop solar, hybrid energy systems and low-emission vehicles to reduce its footprint.
Coates reaching its FY2030 emissions-intensity target five years early is an important milestone. Sustaining that progress across all three operating businesses will be critical to SGH’s ambition of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
SHAFANA FAZAL
