Green Operation
Green Operational Targets
Energy Conservation Targets
Strengthening electricity management and implementing energy-saving retrofits to ensure 100% adoption of light-emitting diode (LED) energy-saving lighting fixtures for new and replacement lighting installations in the headquarters building.
Enhancing operational energy efficiency of data centers by optimizing Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE).
Emission Reduction Targets
Developing and refining a greenhouse gas emission management system, improving operational GHG management capabilities and digitalization, cultivating Bank-wide awareness of carbon reduction, and comprehensively reducing greenhouse gas emissions arising from daily operations and office activities.
Strengthening management of official vehicle usage and promoting green commuting practices to reduce tailpipe emissions.
Water Saving Targets
Improving precision in water resource management and increasing the adoption rate of water-saving fixtures across all branches. By 2025, 100% of newly installed or replaced water equipment in the headquarters building will meet water-saving standards.
Conducting annual water conservation awareness campaigns to enhance employees’ water-saving consciousness.
Waste Minimization Targets
Engaging professional agencies to handle all categories of waste. Retired electronic equipment is fully recycled and disposed of by qualified environmental protection-certified professional e-waste recyclers.
Optimizing demand management for office supplies. Implementing a borrowing system for reusable office items to reduce procurement volume and achieving circular reuse of existing resources.
Energy Management
Lighting System Management
Priority for Energy-Efficient Equipment: The headquarters building and all branch outlets use LED energy-saving lighting fixtures. During procurement, energy-saving and low-power-consumption products are prioritized.
Timed Facility Shutdown: The headquarters building employs a centralized control lighting system. During lunch breaks, lighting in office areas (excluding safety and emergency lighting) is automatically turned off. After working hours, full-floor lighting is automatically shut down hourly. All branch outlets’ outdoor signage lighting features an automatic nighttime shutdown function, ceasing operation after 24:00.
Air Conditioning System Management
Energy-Saving Mode Activation: The headquarters office air conditioning is regulated by a centralized control system. It remains off on non-working days and operates at seasonal minimum temperature settings, with summer minimum temperatures set higher than in other seasons.
Automated System Adjustment: Air conditioning exhaust volume in the headquarters office is automatically adjusted based on time slots and ceases operation automatically after 18:00 on workdays.
Office Equipment Management
Timed Energy-Saving Mode: Printers, copiers, and other office equipment are set to activate energy-saving mode on a schedule. Power is turned off if devices remain unused for extended periods.
Daily Specialized Patrols: The headquarters office area integrates daily security inspections with a dedicated shutdown and power-off campaign, enforcing compliance with post-workday shutdown protocols. At the Hefei Operations Center, specialized personnel conduct post-business-hour inspections to verify power disconnection, eliminating overnight standby power consumption.
Natural Gas Usage Management
Reducing Energy Consumption: Natural gas valves are promptly closed after use. A natural gas consumption ledger is maintained, with weekly analysis and monthly summaries.
Replacement with Energy-Efficient Facilities: Electric cooking appliances are installed at the headquarters building and Shunyi Technology Park.
Regular Facility Maintenance: Natural gas pipelines undergo periodic inspections to prevent leaks, with faulty pipelines repaired immediately.
Official Vehicle Usage Management
Fuel Consumption Ledger Establishment: A unified ledger is created to strengthen fuel consumption statistics management for official vehicles. Single-vehicle accounting is implemented for expense tracking, with monthly records of each vehicle’s expenditures. Fuel refills are cross-checked against mileage data.
Promoting Green Commuting: Employees are encouraged to use public transportation for official trips. Routes are optimized based on passenger numbers, destination distances, and weather conditions to advocate green commuting practices.
Water Resource Management
The Bank actively advances water resource management and continuously improves precision in operational practices. In 2024, the Bank promoted the use of water-saving appliances and conducted regular maintenance of water equipment. Over 400 drinking water dispensers were installed, with filter cartridges replaced periodically to ensure optimal performance and avoid water waste caused by clogging or reduced filtration efficiency. Water meters in the headquarters building were monitored and managed by zone to accurately track usage patterns and promptly identify areas of high consumption. Signage was installed to remind staff to turn off taps promptly, and faucet conditions were closely monitored to prevent leaks or drips, thereby minimizing water waste.
Paper Management
Paperless Office Operations
Printers are defaulted to black-and-white duplex printing mode. Business cards are printed on recycled paper and supplemented with digital versions to minimize physical card usage. The Bank prioritizes procurement of copy paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC).
Paperless Business Processes
China CITIC Bank App, online banking platforms, and other digital channels support online access to transaction records, electronic receipts, account statements, and credit card bills. This eliminates the need for customers to visit branches to print paper documents such as transaction histories or receipts, effectively reducing business-related paper usage.
The Bank introduced electronic invoices for corporate clients, facilitating paperless invoice management. In 2024, 241,500 electronic invoices were issued, saving approximately 483,000 sheets of paper.
As one of the first pilot banks under the Ministry of Finance’s Electronic Voucher Accounting Data Standard, the Bank provides fully digital OFD-format vouchers such as electronic receipts and full-page statements to corporate clients via direct banking interfaces and online banking platforms. In 2024, over 415 million vouchers were downloaded through corporate digital channels, reducing paper consumption by at least 208 million sheets.
Paperless Procurement
The Bank developed and promoted a Digital Procurement Shared Platform to digitize the entire procurement process. In 2024, 1,535 online procurement projects were executed, effectively reducing paper waste from printing tender documents in traditional procurement workflows.
Waste Management
Waste generated during the Bank’s operations is categorized into hazardous waste and non-hazardous waste. For different types of waste, the Bank adopts scientific and rational disposal methods, actively promotes waste reduction and resource recycling, and ensures appropriate waste treatment.
Hazardous Waste
A unified recycling mechanism has been established for hazardous waste like toner cartridges.
100% of retired IT equipment is processed by professional e-waste recyclers holding “Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Processing Qualification Certificates” issued by local ecological and environmental authorities.
Based on the waste type, recycling vendors employ scientifically sound and appropriately matched methods for equipment dismantling, classify and recycle casings and components, extract metal raw materials such as copper, iron, and aluminum for circular utilization. Concurrently, by altering the physical and chemical properties of discarded products, they reduce or eliminate hazardous components in harmful waste such as circuit boards, and ultimately dispose of them in landfill sites meeting environmental protection requirements.
Non-Hazardous Waste
Waste is sorted into recyclables, food waste, and other waste using labeled bins. Dedicated staff oversee timely collection and disposal. In 2024, the Bank advanced the “Clean Plate” Campaign by offering half-portioned meal options in cafeterias to further reduce food waste.
Exhaust Gas and Pollutant Emission Management
To minimize emissions from official vehicles, the Bank established usage scenarios for official vehicles and launched a “Vehicle Reservation System” to enhance management and reduce dispatch frequency.
For kitchen fume reduction, water-mist fume hoods were installed. Kitchen exhaust ducts and fume purifiers were regularly cleaned, cooking methods were adjusted by adopting low-fume techniques for certain dishes to reduce emissions and environmental impact.
Green Branches
The Bank replaced traditional wall tiles and leather furniture with fabric-based furnishings and factory-processed composite aluminum panels in branch construction to achieve environmental protection, dust reduction and noise reduction effects. All branch lighting uses LED energy-saving tubes. A Branch Information Publishing Platform was implemented to enable direct digital poster distribution from headquarters to branches, significantly reducing printed materials. In 2024, the Bank’s Chengdu Branch received a Carbon Neutrality Registration Certificate from the “Carbon Benefit Platform”, becoming Chengdu’s first “Net-Zero Carbon Branch” achieving carbon neutrality through this platform.
*The English version were translated based on the Simplified Chinese version. In case of any discrepancies among the versions, the Simplified Chinese version shall prevail.