Only four FTSE 100 companies have credible climate transition plans in place, as the UK’s largest companies fail to act to limit greenhouse gas emissions, according to environmental non profit CDP.
Climate transition plans are used to demonstrate to capital markets and a company's stakeholders that an organisation has acted to ensure its business model will work in a net-zero economy.
Transition plans should include an action plan with deadlines that outlines how an organisation will pivot its existing assets, operations, and business model to align with the latest and most ambitious climate science recommendations.
CDP's research also found only 31 companies have aligned their targets to the science based targets initiatives. Paul Dickinson, founder chair of CDP, said: "While the vast majority of the UK's biggest companies are disclosing climate data through CDP, when you start to dig deeper, the story is not as positive."
For the first time, CDP is making its emissions data easily accessible to all in an online tool that will allow anyone to access aggregated emissions data disclosed by nearly 10,000 companies to CDP.
"We want everyone to be able to access and inspect the data, to help fuel the action that is so urgently required," Dickinson said.
"I urge every FTSE 100 chief executive to step up, take responsibility and ensure the businesses they lead act on the commitments they've made to limit greenhouse gas emissions, including supporting governments to introduce necessary policies," he added.
The Corporate Environmental Action Tracker includes data from the past three years disclosures of the world's most important and influential corporates, including 91 of the firms on the FTSE 100. It shows overall only 24% of disclosing companies, covering 5% of emissions, are on track to meet their targets.
In more positive news the latest data from 2022 disclosures shows FTSE 100 companies are making progress. The majority of companies, 81, have financial incentives at board and/or c-suite level linked to environmental performance, and 62 companies have targets that include Scope 3 emissions.
CDP's tracker will be updated annually to provide a key tool to inform business decisions and drive accountability to support impactful climate action. It draws data from nearly 10,000 companies that included emissions values in their disclosures, covering 16% of global emissions, including the majority of the FTSE 100 and S&P 500.
It comes as CDP calls for all companies across the globe to disclose to provide a more comprehensive picture of how far off the global economy is from hitting 1.5°C degrees warming, and where more action is needed.
Original Source: Investment Week
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