Shairu Becomes India's 'First Carbon-Neutral Cutter'

RAPAPORT... Shairu Gems Diamonds claims to have become India's first natural-diamond manufacturer to achieve carbon-neutral status, using offsets to cancel out emissions.The company worked with consultants Natural Capital Partners to calculate its carbon footprint across its own global operations, as well as emissions resulting from third-party transporters and distributors, business travel and employees' commutes. It then bought carbon offsets that exceeded this total, Shairu, a De Beers sightholder, explained Thursday."We increasingly see luxury consumers assessing the social and environmental impact of their purchase decisions," said Shairu director Siddharth Mehta. "Our pursuit for positive climate action will only benefit our retail partners in meeting their luxury consumers' needs."The move comes amid a sharpened focus on environmental activism in the diamond midstream. Last year, nine sightholders - not including Shairu - committed to becoming carbon-neutral over an unspecified time period. Shairu's estimated emissions for 2020 came to 1,948.1 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents, it said, citing an independent assessment using Natural Capital Partners' CarbonNeutral Protocol. The company purchased offsets accounting for 2,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents.Image: Shairu's headquarters in Surat, India. (Shairu Gems Diamonds)