Who was examined and how?
The Reporting Standards Foundation, the Polish Association of Listed Companies, and Bureau Veritas Polska, in cooperation with MATERIALITY, have announced the results of the fourth edition of the Corporate Climate Crisis Awareness Study. The study was based on data from 152 annual reports of companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, covering the period 2017-2021. The content of the reports was analyzed against 10 criteria. The methodology of the study has not changed since last year, when changes were introduced in the assessment of the substantive scope (the criteria were expanded to include the assessment of climate management and the analysis of GHG emission reporting methods was included), which provides a good basis for comparison and a comprehensive assessment of the situation over the last two years.
Companies still need to refine their climate reporting
This year, the average score of companies in the Climate Awareness Survey was 2.71 out of a possible 10 points, which was 0.92 points higher than last year. The best company scored 9.67 points (vs. 8.50 points in 2021). 341 companies were given a score of zero (a year ago it was 351). Despite the intensifying market trends and regulations at the global and EU level, only a few criteria showed significant improvement.
On the one hand, the picture that emerges from the analysis is slightly optimistic. Over the course of the year, the number of companies that reliably report greenhouse gas emissions (in all or at least two scopes) increased by 15%. On the other hand, the presence of climate management in the organizational structure remains very weak. Environmental management, the impact of organizations on the climate, and the analysis of financial risks associated with climate change remain outside the priorities and development strategies of companies in Poland. Meanwhile, in a changing regulatory, economic, and—this year, particularly important—geopolitical context, clearly defining what a company's business model should look like in a world fraught with uncertainty is crucial to its resilience.
A larger group, greater awareness
An unquestionably positive change compared to the 2021 results is the significantly larger group of leaders. Twenty-one companies received the title of Climate-Conscious Company in 2022. CCC S.A. remains the leader of the ranking, improving its score by 1.17 points to 9.76. It was followed by Powszechny Zakład Ubezpieczeń S.A. (9.33 points) and Allegro.eu S.A. (9.00 points). The following companies scored above 8 points: Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa SA, Immofinanz AG, ING Bank Śląski S.A., Agora S.A., Bank Millennium SA, mBank SA, and 8 points for Sanok Rubber Company S.A. The following companies scored above 7 points: LUG SA Capital Group, BNP Paribas Bank Polska S.A., Tauron Polska Energia SA, Erbud S.A., Inter Cars S.A., Wirtualna Polska Holding S.A., Grupa Lotos S.A., and VRG SA. Amica S.A., Budimex S.A., and Grupa Żywiec SA received 7 points each. The authors of the research methodology emphasize that the title awarded reflects only how transparently companies report on climate change issues. No conclusions should be drawn from this as to whether companies are acting responsibly with regard to climate change, for example by reducing greenhouse gas emissions – this was not the subject of the study.
How do the best in Poland do it?
Of the 21 companies mentioned above, 85% has a strategy relating to climate issues, and nearly 50% identifies climate-related risks and opportunities and clearly indicates whether they have a significant impact on the company's financial performance or strategy. Importantly, over 70% of the companies featured in this year's CCA ranking manage climate issues at the level of the Management Board or Supervisory Board, including the leader of the ranking, CCC S.A. (the report notes the high importance of ESG issues in the Management Board). The same issues, i.e., climate strategy, risk analysis, or the involvement of the Management Board and Supervisory Board in climate change issues, fare significantly worse across the entire population of companies surveyed.
The highest average score was achieved by companies from the Finance macro-sector (an increase of 1.63 points to 4.34). The macro-sectors of Fuel and Energy, Chemicals, and Industrial and Construction Production also recorded dynamic growth rates, which unfortunately does not mean that these sectors report the best results. Companies whose report structure can serve as a benchmark for others deserve special mention, such as: Grupa Żywiec S.A., which identifies significant risks and opportunities, time horizon, management methods, and clearly describing the methodology used to calculate GHG emissions, or Arctic Paper – a company that, although not among the leaders, clearly showed the structure of climate impact management, distinguishing between the management board and operational levels.
Guidance for the future
The results of the fourth edition of the Climate Awareness Survey of Companies were announced during the „CCA Survey Results” conference organized by the Polish Association of Listed Companies on October 12, 2022. The part of the meeting concerning the ranking results was led by Mirosław Kachniewski, President of the Management Board of the Polish Association of Listed Companies, Katarzyna Skrzynecka, Sustainability Senior Specialist, MATERIALITY, and Piotr Biernacki, President of the Management Board of the Reporting Standards Foundation. The second part of the meeting focused on issues that are the future of non-financial reporting. Paulina Szulc-Kłosińska, Sustainability Consultant and GHG Verifier at Bureau Veritas Polska, spoke about the Science Based Targets Initiative Net-Zero Standard, the first global standard for zero emissions at the corporate level.
“The upcoming legislative changes outline an ambitious future in terms of climate policy, which will become part of everyday business life for entrepreneurs. We must bear in mind that climate awareness will soon no longer be enough—companies will have to become climate responsible, and that is a huge difference. The CCA study shows how prepared businesses are to embark on the demanding decarbonization paths outlined in line with scientific targets. It is worth familiarizing yourself with the ambitious criteria of the Net-Zero Standard today, so that you can start building your GHG emission reduction strategy in the best possible way. The SBT initiative motivates, if not forces, entrepreneurs to think not only about current emissions, but also about future emission levels related, on the one hand, to business development and, on the other, to available technological solutions. Only such an approach will ensure that our joint efforts to limit global warming to 1.5°C will have lasting effects.” – emphasizes Paulina Szulc-Kłosińska, Sustainability Consultant and GHG Verifier, Bureau Veritas Poland.
In the final part of the webinar, Piotr Biernacki, President of the Reporting Standards Foundation, representing the EFRAG Sustainability Reporting Technical Expert Group, an expert working group developing draft EU sustainability reporting standards (ESRS) for the European Commission ), presented an overview and the current status of the ESRS E1 draft standard on climate change reporting. It should be noted that the requirements set out in the ESRS will be mandatory for reporting for 2024.
“Over the past five years, companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange have been laboriously improving the quality of their climate change reporting. Although the number of Climate-Conscious Companies has increased significantly, with 21 now listed, this result has been achieved by only a small group of leaders.” – comments Piotr Biernacki, president of the Reporting Standards Foundation. “Most other companies are far from prepared for the requirements of the market, investors, stakeholders, and regulations coming into force in less than 15 months. As many as one-third of the largest Polish companies do not publish any information on greenhouse gas emissions. Meanwhile, upcoming requirements set out in the CSRD directive and ESRS standards will require everyone to report very specific information. Companies will be required, among other things, to present their transformation plans in such a way that they comply with the provisions of the Paris Agreement. At the same time, ESRS standards are not excessive requirements; they are based, among other things, on existing guidelines such as those developed under the SBTi initiative.” – adds Piotr Biernacki.
The methodology of the CCA 2022 Climate Awareness Survey and its results are publicly available at website of the Reporting Standards Foundation i website of the Polish Association of Listed Companies and attached to this announcement – on the Bureau Veritas Polska website.
Details of the CCA 2022 survey for listed companies
About the study
The Corporate Climate Crisis Awareness study is a project of the Reporting Standards Foundation, the Polish Association of Listed Companies, and Bureau Veritas. In 2020, consulting firms Go Responsible and MATERIALITY became partners supporting the study. The aim of the project is to regularly examine which companies are aware of their impact on climate change. The results of the study are made public. The study is conducted in accordance with an established and transparent methodology and is based on information provided by companies in their annual reports.
The project initiators want to raise awareness among large and medium-sized enterprises about their impact on climate change and, at the same time, provide investors, customers, and all other public stakeholders with reliable, measurable, and comparable data to assess which companies take climate change issues into account in their management processes.
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