TCL is a "Doer": Embedding ESG to Create Positive Impact across the Global Value Chain
TCL Founder and Chairman Li Dongsheng in an In-Depth Dialogue with the United Nations Global Compact
SHENZHEN, China, March 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- TCL Founder and Chairman Li Dongsheng recently participated in the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) "ESG+20 Sustainability Leaders Interview Series." During the session, he spoke with Ms. Liu Meng, Head of China Office with the UNGC. Li shared how TCL implements ESG principles into its global operations, advances green and low-carbon transformation, and promotes coordinated development across its industrial chain. The discussion also highlighted how TCL invests in communities through its global value chain to contribute to mutually beneficial outcomes.
On green and carbon reduction practices, Li noted that manufacturing is a major energy consumer and companies must pursue innovation in production technologies, processes, and workflows to achieve energy savings. For example, TCL CSOT implemented multiple energy-saving measures across its manufacturing operations in 2024, achieving electricity savings of 220,000 MWh. In October 2025, the company announced the construction of a printed OLED production line designed to significantly reduce power consumption compared with traditional vacuum evaporation processes, reducing carbon emissions at the source. On the product side, TCL's FreshIN energy-saving air conditioner was honored with the "AI Energy-Saving Technology Gold Award" at IFA 2025 in Berlin, for its carbon footprint-reducing green design. At the industry level, TCL Zhonghuan supports the global development of clean energy with its core products and contributes to the transformation of global energy infrastructure.
As a leading company within its industrial chain, TCL, through TCL Industries and TCL Technology, has consistently encouraged upstream and downstream partners to implement ESG principles. The company has established supplier requirements covering labor rights protection and operational compliance, promoting responsible practices across the value chain.
Li emphasized that in its global expansion, TCL operates to "the highest standards" when navigating diverse regulatory environments. From its acquisition of Thomson's color TV business and Alcatel's mobile phone business in 2004 to the establishment of manufacturing bases in Mexico and Vietnam, TCL has evolved from exporting products to co-building local industrial capabilities. Sustainability principles are embedded in its global operations, creating value for local economies and communities, as well as employees.
"For advanced manufacturing, technological innovation is the most critical core capability," Li noted. TCL invests approximately RMB12 billion (about USD 1.74 billion) annually in R&D and has accumulated 124,000 patents, including nearly 20,000 PCT patents. In recent years, TCL has integrated large AI models into its intelligent manufacturing systems, improving efficiency and quality and shortening R&D cycles. In 2024, these initiatives generated RMB530 million (around USD 76.8 million) in economic benefits for TCL CSOT.
Li emphasized that the essence of brand reputation lies in fulfilling social responsibility and earning consumer trust. TCL has fully incorporated ESG into the business strategies and annual plans of all its business units and publishes ESG reports annually, demonstrating transparency and accountability. In 2025, TCL also became a Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Partner, attracting significant global market visibility. That year, its sales in the European market increased by 30%, reflecting the mutually reinforcing relationship between commercial performance and social value.
Since officially joining the UNGC in July 2024, TCL has been committed to supporting the organization's Ten Principles across human rights, labor, environment, and anti-corruption, and to actively advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
From reducing its own energy consumption and emissions to strengthening supply chain collaboration, and from upholding the highest global standards to driving green development through technological innovation and responsible brand building, TCL has embraced a "doer" mindset and fully embedded ESG into its corporate strategy.
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