Climate platform calls on 1,600 firms to share their environmental impact data

An environmental platform has called on 1,600 high impact companies to share their emissions.

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a non-profit to which companies can voluntarily disclose information on their climate performance, is urging 1,607 of the world’s highest-impact companies to share the data through its standardised system.

This includes firms like Tesla, Chevron, Volvo, Saudi Aramco and Glencore, which have never disclosed their environmental impact data to the CDP.

Others like BP, Amazon and Boots Pharmacy owner Walgreens Boots Alliance – which shared information on their climate change impact last year – have now been asked to respond with further disclosures on areas like forests and water security.

The companies sprawled across 51 countries are estimated to emit more than 4,200 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent annually – almost the same amount of greenhouse gas emissions of the United Kingdom, EU and Canada combined, the CDP says.

It comes as the non-profit’s annual non-disclosure campaign, launched on Wednesday, has been backed by a record 288 financial institutions this year.

Schroders, Cathay FHC, Aviva Investors, Manulife, Sumitomo Life Insurance, AQR, and PGGM are among the investors across 31 countries, with a total of £23 trillion in assets, who will be writing to the non-disclosing companies about sharing their impact with CDP as part of the campaign.

Disclosing data to the non-profit allows investors and others to compare companies’ performance in areas like climate change, water and forests.

Financial institutions need the data “to support risk management practices, tracking portfolio alignment to net zero goals and unlocking sustainability-linked opportunities”, Claire Elsdon, the CDP’s joint global director of capital markets, said.

“These uses can serve to not only safeguard but also boost long-term profitability,” she added.

The firms will be asked to disclose data on at least one of three areas – climate change, forests and water – as relevant to their operations.

The platform said data on climate change-related disclosure remains the most highly sought after data by financial institutions, with 72% of the 1,607 companies asked to disclose on this area.

Financial institutions are also increasingly pushing for disclosure and action on water and deforestation, with 28% of the companies requested to report on water-related impact and 26% asked to disclose on forests this year, it added.

“We believe responding to CDP is an important part of corporate disclosure and allow investors to understand the climate governance and performance of investees,” Ms Elsdon said.

“The unprecedented support for the campaign signals recognition that robust transition plans necessitate higher rates of transparency across all segments of the environment, and a holistic understanding of financial risks, to better future-proof operations and accelerate the path toward a net-zero, nature-positive global economy.”

Sophia Cheng, chief investment officer at Cathay FHC, said: “We believe responding to CDP is an important part of corporate disclosure and allow investors to understand the climate governance and performance of investees.

“From our experiences, over half of companies were enhancing climate management performance in the following years.

“Cathay is committed to being the responsible investor to cultivate resilience and sustainability.”

Glencore declined to comment.

Volvo Group said the company shares information on climate in its annual sustainability report “rather than participating in various individual surveys”.

“The climate issue is one of the most prioritised issues we work on, and we fully support the Paris goals,” a spokesperson said.

“We are today a leader in the transformation towards sustainable transport and infrastructure systems and are well positioned and motivated to maintain the leading position.”

The other firms named have been contacted by PA.