Not only does Topsil manufacture a product that is used in the technology necessary for us to succeed with the green transition. The company has also managed to expand and simultaneously reduce its own CO2 footprint to such an extent that it has now won a newly instituted award: ‘The Green Gazelle’.
The production company Topsil GlobalWafers in Frederikssund, close to Copenhagen, Denmark, has been manufacturing semiconductors since 1959. It is one of only 5 companies in the world that can master the exceptionally complex technology required to produce a very special material. The product is the ultrapure Float Zone (FZ) silicon, a semiconductor material used in nearly all modern power electronics. It sits in components that make the transport, use and control of electrical current far more energy efficient. It is found in wind turbines, electric cars, production machinery, in the power grid and many other places where high voltage and strong current flow. Moreover, it is used in several other smaller niches, for example sensors for medical or military use and as a base material in quantum computers.
How to become a Green Gazelle
Although semiconductors are instrumental for the green transition, the industry itself is also relatively heavy in its environmental footprint. It is therefore extra good news for the climate that it is possible for a company like Topsil to live up to the quite strict criteria for winning the Green Gazelle. The range of candidates includes Companies that operate in CO2-heavy sectors and the list of requirements to be qualified is quite long. The growth in net revenue must be minimum 100% over the past 4 years, and at the same time the company must beat the reduction curve, which means that CO2 emissions must be reduced by a minimum of 5.25% from 2022 to 2023.
During this period, Topsil has reduced its emissions of CO2 per kg. silicon by 16% through optimizations in the production. “The efficiencies have been achieved through a long and steady effort that include investments in automation, a myriad of small continuous improvements and new economies of scale. The entire success is based on a very dedicated and competent staff,” says Christian Hindrichsen, production manager at Topsil.
Hope is bright green, also at Topsil, and thanks to the recognition that comes with receiving the new Green Gazelle award, the continued work for a more sustainable future will be done with a strengthened awareness that it is the right thing to do.