IOI Corp identifies sustainability and climate as strategic priority
IOI CORP BHD (KL:IOICORP) has started its sustainability journey before ESG became mainstream, and has continued to strengthen its capabilities to improve its performance. In fact, sustainability and climate initiatives were identified as one of the four strategic priorities under its new Five-Year Strategic Roadmap (2025-2029), says group managing director and CEO Datuk Lee Yeow Chor.
This commitment has propelled IOI Corp to be acknowledged in the Best of the Best category at The Edge Malaysia ESG Awards 2026, which celebrates public-listed companies (PLCs) that have won gold awards for three consecutive years.
PLCs awarded with the Best of the Best recognition will remain in the category for three years if they maintain or improve their ESG scores. This is IOI Corp's second year in the category.
Lee adds that collective ownership of ESG across the organisation — from employees to management and the board — together with systematic monitoring,data-driven decision-making and continuous stakeholder engagement, has contributed to its success.
The company is particularly proud of having its near-term greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets validated by the Science-based Targets initiative in December 2025.
This marks a milestone, says Lee, as it provides an externally validated pathway for the next phase of the company's climate initiatives, following its 46% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions intensity (against a 2015 baseline) in financial year 2025.
"This progress reflects the sustained group-wide efforts to embrace a circularity approach by using biogas generated from our mill effluent to power our operations, harnessing renewable energy from our biomass, and continuously improving resource efficiency," says Lee.
"Equally important is our nature-based solutions approach,through which we are undertaking reforestation and rehabilitation initiatives to increase carbon sequestration while enhancing biodiversity and ecosystem resilience."
The biggest challenge the company faced in the past year was to accelerate ESG transformation at scale,while balancing operational realities and uncertainties, business competitiveness and increasingly complex stakeholder expectations.
To address this, IOI Corp adopted a structured, data-driven approach, prioritising material areas and leveraging technology, innovation and cross-functional collaboration, anchored by a strong governance framework, says Lee.
He hopes to see greater alignment across the ESG ecosystem in Malaysia, where governments and regulators provide clear, consistent and practical policies, consumers translate awareness into informed choices, and investors take a longer-term view of ESG as a driver of resilience and value creation.
"This is particularly important to IOI today because ESG is increasingly intertwined with the long-term resilience and competitiveness of our business. lt influences how we manage climate and nature-related risks, resources and supply chains, as well as how we create value for our employees, communities, customers and shareholders," says Lee.
The company will continue to progress systemically and methodically towards its Net Zero 2040 commitment, among other targets, and strengthen its Climate Action Plan. It has also started addressing Scope 3 emissions in its Procurement Standards and Principles, and will intensify its focus on nature.
"At the same time, we will continue to emphasise the social dimension of sustainability, particularly in the areas of human rights, ethical recruitment, labour practices, workers' welfare and community development," says Lee.