Grade summary

Linde has gone from position eight to six in the ChemScore ranking, scoring four points more than last year. While losing three points in the Controversies category – due to a larger penalty record – the company has made significant improvement in the Development of Safer Chemicals category. Although Linde produces or uses five hazardous substances, the company tracks its products and their applications worldwide to monitor potential health and environmental impacts. A dedicated team assesses the potential risks in each phase of the product’s lifecycle and communicates hazard information. Linde offers sustainable products, such as green hydrogen, but not on third-party platforms such as ChemSec’s Marketplace. The company attempts to minimize or eliminate hazardous substances, but lacks a clear commitment to prohibit substances of very high concern when developing new products.

How did we come to this score?

Opportunities for improvement

1. Market safer alternatives
   We did identify safer alternatives in Linde’s product portfolio, but these are not marketed on any independent third-party platform. Therefore, they are hard to find for downstream users looking to substitute hazardous chemicals. A good place to advertise is ChemSec’s Marketplace, where buyers and suppliers can find and market safer alternatives.
2. Circularity
   The chemical industry finds itself at the beginning of the value chain. Therefore, it has a responsibility to act fast and ambitiously against the ever-growing scarcity of our planet’s resources. Linde receives five out of eight circularity points, but should develop and communicate its circular economy strategy further. The foundation – circular products and recycling – is already in place. Now, it’s time for Linde to set a baseline and develop KPIs to demonstrate ambition and visualise progress on their path towards a more circular business model.
3. Reduce hazardous portfolio
   Scientists agree that chemical pollution has crossed a planetary boundary and become an urgent global problem. This threatens the stability of global ecosystems upon which humanity depends, by damaging the biological and physical processes that underpin all life. Linde has five hazardous chemicals in its product portfolio. This can be compared with the company’s gas-producing peers Air Liquide and Air Products which only have one: carbon monoxide. Linde should aim to reduce its hazardous portfolio by identifying all uses, as well as publishing volumes and percentage of total revenue of its hazardous substances. It should also publish a reduction road map of each hazardous chemical and an annual progression report. If the company continues to produce any hazardous substances, it needs to present a rationale for its essential use, motivate the production volume, and state how much money it spends on research and development to find a safer alternative.

Category breakdown