TECHNOLOGY

Major UK bank NatWest is reducing its Scope 1 and Scope 2 locationbased emissions by 50 % as part of its ongoing commitment to achieve net zero for its operational value chain by 2050. As part of this mission, the bank took stock of its operations and realised that software development was contributing to Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. Immediately developing principles and guidelines, the commercial and retail bank created toolkits aimed at reducing energy costs associated with software testing. By bringing automation to the table, software testing, which includes checking quality and functionality before launch, it saw an increase in efficiency as well as a positive

step towards its net-zero goal. Test environment energy was cut by up to 85 % as execution time decreased. Similarly, script development time was halved due to the automation process. Maintenance time decreased by 40 %, also contributing to a 40 % decrease in test environment energy. In 2023, NatWest won the Team of the Year at the UK National Sustainability Awards.

CLIMATE GOALS

In highlighting how many emissions can be reduced through the deployment of IA, NatWest takes a huge step toward its sustainability goals.