Sokos Hotels is the first to offer the possibility to compensate for the carbon emissions of a hotel stay

As soon as the amendment to the Money Collection Act came into force on 22 November 2021, S Group has offered the possibility to compensate for carbon emissions at Sokos Hotels. With the help of Compensate, guests at the hotels have the opportunity to compensate for the carbon footprint of their hotel stay. Sokos Hotels is the first hotel chain in Finland to offer such a compensation scheme. 

- Responsible business conduct has been a priority already for a long time, which has led to Sokos Hotels being chosen the most responsible hotel chain in its industry for several years in a row. Providing the opportunity for compensation is a natural continuation of our work. Our customers have already wished for this opportunity, said Harri Ojanperä, Senior Vice President, SOK Travel and Hospitality Industry Chain Management before the Money Collection Act became into force. 

Hotel guests have been able to compensate for the carbon footprint of their stay and breakfast at Sokos Hotels from Monday 22 November 2021, when the amendment to the Money Collection Act came into force. The price of compensation is only 0,47 € per night (Original Sokos Hotel Viru, Tallinn: 1,22 €). The price is based on average emissions per room. Jukka Kaartinen, Development Manager, SOK Travel and Hospitality Industry Chain Management, emphasizes that the calculation is based on actual guest amounts from 2019 and that the calculations have been verified by a third party. 

- At Sokos Hotels, the cost of compensation for the climate emissions of a hotel visit remains low, as all our hotels only use renewable electricity, and their energy efficiency has long been improved. In practice, therefore, only emissions from the property's heating and breakfasts remain to be compensated. 

The funds raised through compensation are used to finance climate projects in which carbon already released into the atmosphere is sequestered, for example, in forests or soil. The effectiveness of sequestration has been scientifically verified and certified. To carry out the compensation, Sokos Hotels have partnered with the domestic foundation Compensate. 

The compensation paid by guests does not replace the S Group's own climate work

- Compensation is an additional service offered to hotel guests that allows them to reduce their own daily carbon footprint. The S Group does not include the compensation paid by guests in its own climate targets, Kaartinen emphasizes. 

The S Group's climate targets belong to the most ambitious in Finland. The group is not just aiming for carbon neutrality, but plans to be carbon-negative as early as 2025, when it is expected to remove more carbon from the atmosphere than what is being produced. During 2015–2020, the S Group already reduced its own carbon emissions by 70 percent. 

In addition to its own climate measures, the S Group has challenged its suppliers to reduce their own carbon emissions by a total of one million tonnes. The programme called Big Deal has already been implemented by more than a hundred companies.