Green Talk with Harsh Choudhry and Vikas Upadhyay

1. Can you share with our readers the inspiration behind founding Sentra.world and what motivated you to focus on green hydrogen, solar energy, and energy efficiency?

Climate change is one of the biggest threats to civilization today, with impacts that will span generations. While there are many efforts underway to address it, we have barely scratched the surface of solutions needed. Achieving sustainability requires close collaboration with businesses, otherwise, it will always be a secondary concern. Industrial manufacturing generates 60% of carbon emissions, yet is inextricably tied to profits. Sustainable and profitable systems must advance together, two sides of the same coin.

My co-founder Vikas and I each have about 15 years of experience at McKinsey working on sustainability, heavy industry, and technology - the very intersection needed to address this crisis. While climate change has gained more attention recently, current solutions fail to drive the profitability and scalability needed for real impact. This motivated us to start sentra.world with the objective of decarbonizing industrial manufacturing. Technology is one lever, but it will take persistent, multifaceted efforts over decades to curb emissions, as meaningful change spans generations. We are committed for the long haul.

2. How does Sentra.world contribute to the decarbonization of industrial manufacturing, and what role do AI and blockchain play in achieving this goal?

Sentra.world offers end-to-end decarbonization solutions so industrial manufacturers can focus on production while we drive their sustainability transformation. We are a one-stop partner spanning the entire emissions management life cycle.

Leveraging sector-specific methodologies, we help companies calculate carbon footprints. Our Sentra.network also enables supply chain connectivity to align emissions tracking and reduction efforts. For enhanced transparency, Sentra Trace employs blockchain to immutably log climate data across partners.

We simplify meeting multiplying compliance needs through standardized reporting. Going beyond monitoring, our AI solution performs climate analytics to uncover hotspots and suggests targeted interventions. We also connect clients to a global marketplace of verified emissions-reduction technologies and services.

Additionally, we improve access to sustainability-linked financing where funding depends on meeting green targets. Overall, while advanced technologies power our platform, client value is the priority. We ease the decarbonization journey through integrated offerings including measurement and disclosure, supply chain coordination, compliance automation, quantification of high-impact areas and access to proven solutions – unlocking efficiency, cost and reputation gains.

3. It is mentioned that Sentra.world easily connects with leading ERP/MES solutions. How seamless is this integration, and what benefits does it bring to industrial companies?

A very compelling use case gaining traction is heat-level emissions tracking. Rather than just monthly totals, we measure emissions for every production batch - down to the furnace runs in steel manufacturing that last around 2.5 hours. This ties emissions data directly to each customer order. So when a customer receives their steel products, it comes with grades, specifications and now - a unique carbon footprint represented by a QR code. Capturing emissions at this granularity means collecting millions of data points per manufacturing facility, impossible through manual data transfers. Our advanced AI engines and algorithms handle these vast calculations and complex data integrations. We connect with client ERP systems like SAP, Oracle, or other platforms via APIs to extract relevant emissions data. This data is then hosted securely on our cloud platform to ensure compliance. Our software accesses this data, runs calculations, and generates detailed results. Performing these integrations with major ERP partners enables the heat-level tracking that in turn brings business value - the ability to provide product-level emissions transparency to customers. While complex, because this drives differentiated value, we have invested significantly in these capabilities.

4. Given the sensitivity of data in emissions tracking, how does Sentra.world ensure world-class data security norms?

Sentra adopts enterprise-grade security across technology stack, data encryption, access controls, incident response and disaster recovery by leveraging Microsoft cloud solutions. Data transmission and storage occur through FIPS 140-2 compliant encryption protocols like TLS 1.2, AES256, and SHA2 signatures.

Provisioning and authentication follow least privilege and role-based access principles with multi-factor authentication. Password policies are instituted along with quarterly production access reviews.

A dedicated Detection and Response Team manages security incidents with immediate customer notification commitments. Incident response procedures are tested and updated annually.

Third-party penetration testing and continuous monitoring further improve controls. Sentra's shared infrastructure, logically separating customer data, is hosted across distributed data centers offering state-of-the-art physical security.

Sentra also provides data residency options for organizations to choose where data is stored geographically. Overall, defense-in-depth security allows confidently outsourcing critical workflows to Sentra’s cloud while safeguarding sensitive assets.

5. With new regulations coming up to promote cleaner global production, how should steel value chain companies assess and prepare for the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)?

The CBAM, the first of its kind, seeks to ensure fairness for EU producers who pay for their emissions, preventing them from being undercut by imports from non-carbon-priced countries. It will reshape global trade in the short term and push other economies to reduce emissions in the long term.

As the CBAM rolls out, it is expected that prices of commodities and products within the EU may rise, encouraging investment in carbon-reducing technologies abroad. This could also prompt other countries to adopt or increase carbon pricing. Projected CBAM revenues of over US$9 billion annually by 2030 will be partly retained by EU states and partly redistributed to low-income trading partners to spur decarbonization efforts.

Ultimately, the CBAM's implementation is designed to drive global action on carbon pricing, benefiting both the EU and participating nations in their transition to a low-carbon economy.

6.How does CBAM methodology diverge from conventional protocols?

CBAM's route-based calculation, specific CN codes for diverse commodities, and the necessity to track emissions for each shipping route introduce complexities. Internal material balance, elevated default values, and potential supplier impact amplify intricacies. Departure from traditional consumption calculations, dynamic regulations, and the need to identify source streams further distinguishes CBAM from standard carbon footprint reporting.

7. How would a digital tool make it easier to generate CBAM reports every quarter?

Accuracy in CBAM reporting is crucial, as any deviations from guidelines can lead to disqualification. Implementing a digital platform simplifies data collection, and emission calculation, and ensures compliance with CBAM standards, boosting efficiency and value creation. This reduces human error, simplifies the CBAM reporting process to a one-click operation quarterly, and proactively identifies data anomalies in the backend.

Businesses can, in fact, streamline operations, allocate resources efficiently, and focus on enhancing efficiency, compliance, and long-term success. Instead of investing significant time deciphering regulatory changes, a digitized platform handles compliance effortlessly, saving valuable man-hours.

8. Given your expertise, where do you see the future trends in the decarbonization of industrial manufacturing?

Tons of mini innovations will come out from lab scale to pilots and then commercial. This will include AI-led optimization, the viability of nature-based fuels, and high-efficiency equipment. Hydrogen and CCS will have hundreds of pilots in the next 10 years and they will become economically viable for scale by 2030-40.

The IRR threshold for decarbonization emissions will increase with carbon taxes becoming mainstream over the next 2-3 years globally.

Supply chains will become significantly more integrated, and the supplier-producer-buyer relationship will evolve positively, with the entire supply chain working towards decarbonisation as producer decisions will impact suppliers, and vice versa.

Climate engineering as an academic subject will become one of the most sought-after courses needing tens of millions of specialists entering the workforce.