Industrial group partners to improve water, energy and waste management

AS part of its plans to reduce environmental impacts, Babcock Africa has partnered with the National Cleaner Production Centre South Africa (NCPC-SA) to conduct resource-efficient and cleaner production (RECP) assessments across selected priority sites in South Africa. The focus is on energy, water and waste management.

Following this process, the company has embarked on an implementation programme that begins with low- and no-cost interventions, resulting in notable early successes.

Environmental stewardship has shifted from a statutory requirement to a strategic necessity, leading the Babcock International Group to advance its ‘Plan Zero 40’ ambition to transition to a net-zero emissions organisation across all operations by 2040. The company is an inaugural signatory to the UK Defence ESG Charter and has aligned with the Business Ambition for 1.5°C Pledge.

As part of this strategy, responsible resource management is now embedded into products, processes and operations. For Babcock Africa, the immediate priority is to drive sustainable performance across three fronts: energy efficiency, water stewardship and waste reduction.

Through its partnership with NCPC-SA – a national support programme that accelerates South Africa’s transition to a green economy through RECP interventions – Babcock Africa has adopted a systematic and integrated approach to resource management and long-term environmental performance improvement.

The partnership

Babcock International recently published a suite of Environmental Commitments that outline the group’s intention to reduce environmental impact and carbon emissions across its global footprint. To better understand its current position and develop clear improvement roadmaps, Babcock Africa approached NCPC-SA for technical support.

NCPC-SA, funded by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) and hosted by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), supports industrial and selected commercial sectors in adopting sustainable, efficient and competitive operating practices.

Lindani Ncwane, senior project manager at NCPC-SA, explains: “Our goal is to support industry transition toward a green economy through resource efficiency, especially given South Africa’s reliance on coal-based energy. Through our collaboration with Babcock Africa, we provided technical expertise and highly subsidised financial support to conduct RECP assessments at priority sites to identify opportunities to save water and energy and reduce waste generation.”

Kea Tlhapane, environmental lead at Babcock Africa, adds that the partnership was established to proactively address environmental impacts. “Water assessments focused on high-consumption sites exceeding 1 million litres, while waste assessments initially prioritised operations generating more than 100 tonnes of waste. This allowed us to focus on the areas with the highest potential for improvement.”

The process

The RECP programme consists of two phases: detailed assessments and the implementation phase, which is currently underway.

Successes to date

Thava Govender, CEO of Babcock Ntuthuko Engineering, notes that the assessments were completed at pace and with strong collaboration. Of the 423 energy-related action plans identified so far across Babcock International globally, 380 originated from Africa, demonstrating the region’s proactive commitment.

He explains: “The RECP process helped us uncover immediate low-cost opportunities that are already delivering financial and sustainability returns. The technical guidance from NCPC-SA has been invaluable.”

Several notable breakthroughs emerged:

• A long-standing water leak, undetected for nearly 20 years, was identified at one site. The leak had been costing approximately R4 million per year. Repairs have now been completed, significantly reducing water consumption and cost.
• A water-bridging incident at another site revealed that a neighbouring property had illegally connected to Babcock’s water line, driving up consumption. Once resolved, actual usage returned to normal levels.

During a recent benchmarking visit by Senegal’s Bureau de Mise à Niveau (BMN), NCPC-SA selected Babcock as a demonstration site for successful RECP implementation, reinforcing the value of the partnership.

Key to success

Kea Tlhapane emphasises the importance of collaboration: “Resource efficiency challenges cut across systems, processes and behaviours. Collective effort is essential if we want sustained impact. NCPC-SA’s support, together with our SHE teams and operational leaders, has been central to the progress we’ve made.”

Govender adds: “Executive commitment was strong from the outset. Each business unit received the necessary support to move forward with implementation. ESG is not a compliance exercise for us—it is a strategic lever for long-term value creation.”