From Accuracy to Action – Developing Emissions Calculation

The role of emissions calculations in Teleste’s sustainability work

Emissions calculation is a key component of Teleste’s sustainability and climate work. A comprehensive Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions inventory provides the basis for identifying and implementing effective emission reduction measures.

In 2023, value chain (Scope 3) emissions were integrated into the company’s GHG inventory, with 2022 set as the base year. The first calculations gave us a baseline and helped us understand the approximate shares of each emissions category and the relative scale of Scope 3 compared to Scope 1 and 2. Since then, both accuracy and coverage have improved year by year. In 2025, this work was further continued with a special focus on aligning the methodology with the requirements of European Sustainability reporting Standards (ESRS).

This article presents the results of our 2024 Scope 3 calculation, discusses the challenges encountered and share updates on our progress and future plans.

2024 Emissions Calculation Results

As in most companies, the majority of Teleste’s carbon footprint arises from the value chain. Scope 3 emissions account for nearly 99% of the Teleste’s total emissions. Within Scope 3, the most significant emissions categories are use of sold products (Category 11) and purchased goods and services (Category 1), followed by upstream transportations (category 4). This type of emission profile is common among companies that manufacture devices and equipment requiring electricity. In addition, Teleste monitors emissions in all other relevant Scope 3 categories.

The use of sold products represents almost 90% of total emissions. Teleste’s devices typically have long technical life cycles and are operated continuously – often 24/7 throughout the year. For example, in cable broadband networks, Teleste’s amplifiers and other devices generally run around the clock. Same thing applies to public transport solutions, where displays in stations and on the trains are often in constant use.

Another factor increasing the impact is that Teleste’s products have a long lifespan. For emissions accounting, an average lifetime of 10 years was applied, meaning that the reported figures reflect emissions over the entire expected use period. Even though devices are energy-efficient and consume relatively little electricity individually, their continuous operation over a long lifetime makes the overall impact significant. While GHG inventories prefer actual primary data, estimates and assumptions are also inevitable – in practice, devices may naturally remain in use also beyond the assumed 10-year replacement cycle. Purchased goods and services account for about 9% of total emissions, while transportation makes up roughly 2%.

Scope 1 and 2 emissions are reported in Teleste’s sustainability report 2024. During the report verification phase, it was noted that the maturity of Scope 3 calculation was not yet sufficient to fully meet ESRS requirements within the reporting schedule. Verified 2024 scope 3 figures will therefore be published in our ESRS aligned 2025 Sustainability report. (to be published in 2026). Minor changes to the figures may occur.

Challenges in developing emissions calculations

Although emissions calculation can be described as a straightforward multiplication exercise, the overall process, especially regarding Scope 3, is highly complex. Accurate calculations make it possible to focus emission reduction measures on the most material categories.

At the same time, a challenge is to ensure that current reduction actions are reflected in the figures. Greater accuracy improves reliability, but it can also reduce comparability between years. In some cases, methodological changes may be significant enough that the baseline needs to be recalculated. This highlights the importance of collaboration. We need information from other stakeholders, both customers and suppliers, in order to better quantify the impact of reduction actions and refine our calculations.

Future directions

Teleste is committed to further enhancing the accuracy of its emissions calculations. Strengthening expertise in this area will help us better evaluate the impact of climate initiatives and continuously improve reporting quality.

In 2024, Teleste also committed to setting Science Based Targets. The process to define SBTi targets is currently underway, and updates will be shared as the work progresses.

By continuously refining its emissions calculations, Teleste builds the foundation for more impactful climate actions while meeting customer and regulatory requirements.

In focus: Scope 3 reduction target to cut transport emissions Teleste has decided to start reducing scope 3 emissions from transportation and has set a target to cut these emissions by 20% by 2030, relative to the 2022 baseline. Transport emissions relative to tons transported increased approximately 5 % from the previous level. Changes in shipping caused by the situation in the Red Sea extended transport times and increased the total mileage and fuel consumption of sea shipping. In addition, due to the start of U.S. business, Teleste had to rely on air freight for certain larger shipments in order to adhere to customer schedules. Due to the extended transport times in sea shipping and various disruptions, such as the four-week port strike in Finland in Spring 2023, some shipments had to be switched from sea freight to air freight to ensure that the materials needs of production activities were met. To reduce transportation emissions, Teleste favors sea and land transport over air freight. In addition, the company strives to reduce transportation-related emissions by consolidating shipments and using renewable fuels in transport operations where possible. In domestic transportation operations in Finland, Teleste has also switched to a lower-emission service offered by the transportation company. Teleste has also purchased partial SAF for small proportion of its flights.