India Biannual Construction Market Report 3Q/4Q FY2025
Introducing Decarbonise
India is experiencing rapid urbanisation, with an estimated 600 million people, or 40% of the population, projected to live in urban areas by 2036. This growth will drive significant demand for housing and infrastructure.
Estimates indicate that approximately 70% of India’s 2047 urban infrastructure (including drinking water facilities, sanitation, sewerage systems, electricity and gas distribution, urban transport and primary health services) is yet to be built, presenting an opportunity for low-carbon construction.
India’s commitment to the Paris Agreement strengthens the need for lower carbon emissions in construction. The country aims to reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 45% by 2030 (compared to 2005 levels) and achieve net-zero emissions by 2070.
With significant investment in housing and infrastructure to manage the urban transformation, higher resource usage and substantial carbon emissions pose major challenges alongside this massive developmental journey.
In recent times, stakeholders have been primarily focused on reducing operational carbon emissions. Embodied carbon has proven more challenging and is now a key area of focus.
So, what is embodied carbon?
Figure 4
Lifecycle stages defined in EN 15978
Embodied carbon refers to the total greenhouse gas emissions generated from the materials and construction processes involved in creating an asset throughout its lifecycle, split into upfront, in-use and end-of-life.
Historically, decarbonisation efforts have concentrated on the construction and in use stages, with a particular focus on energy consumption and efficiency. However, there is increasing recognition of the need to address emissions beyond these stages, specifically upfront embodied carbon.
Upfront embodied carbon encompasses the carbon released during the materials production and construction phases (A1–A5) of the lifecycle before the building or infrastructure begins to be used. These emissions are released into the atmosphere before occupation or operation.
Why is it important?
Estimates included in the ‘Bringing embodied carbon upfront’ report by the World Green Building Council indicated that upfront carbon will be responsible for half the entire carbon footprint of new construction until 2050. This is a concerning figure as it threatens to deplete a large portion of the remaining global carbon budget.
As buildings become more energy efficient and energy sources decarbonise, the importance of embodied carbon grows. It is even anticipated to become the dominant source of carbon emissions associated with our future buildings. Thus, immediate action on reducing this embodied carbon is essential for India to sustain development without exhausting climate limits.
What is the appetite from the market?
Consumers and businesses are increasingly aware of their environmental impact and seek out spaces that align with their values. Eight in ten of our survey respondents said sustainability compliance is a key motivator for undertaking life cycle embodied carbon assessments on projects, with 64% saying client demand is driving adoption and nearly 60% (59%) saying regulatory requirements mean they are undertaken.
Nearly a third of our survey respondents ranked the top barrier to implementing life cycle embodied carbon assessments as a lack of awareness. The RICS ‘Decarbonising the built environment in India’ policy paper highlights that the Indian real estate and construction policy landscape focuses decarbonisation initiatives on operational carbon, with little focus on embodied carbon. For example, the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) and Eco Niwas Samhita (ENS) measure building performance only in the operation phase and do not consider embodied carbon.
Survey respondents ranked complexity in evaluation as the next most significant barrier, with a quarter ranking it first. India lacks national standards for embodied carbon assessment and reporting, such as the RICS’ whole life carbon assessment (WLCA), as well as professional guidance for reducing carbon. KPMG’s research suggests that less than 5% of globally available frameworks cover embodied carbon reduction in construction projects.
How can I analyse embodied carbon on my projects?
Gleeds' innovative Decarbonise service helps clients to understand and achieve their sustainability targets through life cycle embodied carbon reports using traditional, straightforward inputs, like quantity estimates, bills of quantities and cost plans, aligned with established methodologies set by the RICS.
Key features of our solution include:
- Bespoke reports: Comparison of project embodied carbon values against established industry standards or internal portfolios based on similar project characteristics.
- Cost-carbon trade-off: Analysis of the relationship between carbon impact and cost, enabling informed decision-making.
- Optimisation strategies: Solutions to reduce embodied carbon without compromising quality, working collaboratively with project teams at every stage.
- Comprehensive appraisal: Detailed reports that benchmark and identify carbon-intensive building elements.
- Data-backed insights: Recommendations supported by a vast Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) database compliant with ISO 14025 and EN15804.
- Embodied carbon at any stage: Flexible embodied carbon estimation across all design stages and for all types of building assets.
Figure 8
Decarbonise benefits
Can you give an example of Decarbonise in action?
Recently, Gleeds partnered with a technology client in Southern India to reduce the embodied carbon footprint of their Grade A commercial office space.
By leveraging a detailed lifecycle embodied carbon estimate and our in-house EPD database, our team identified strategies to reduce upfront embodied carbon by 19.5%, translating into a savings of 14,784 tonnes of carbon.
Moreover, the cost impact was minimal, ranging from a -1.55% to a +0.85% change, proving that sustainability can be achieved without significant cost increases.
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