The Ethos Foundation and Pictet Asset Management are publishing today the results of the third survey on the climate strategies of Swiss listed companies (Carbon Disclosure Project). Only 56% of the companies approached agreed to provide investors with the relevant data – a relatively modest participation rate, in line, however, with that of the previous year (57%).
Moreover, 37% of responding companies refused to have the information they gave made public. Overall, companies were more inclined to communicate their direct CO2 emissions (72% against 64% in 2008). In contrast, the number of companies which calculate and disclose their indirect emissions (relating to the use of their products and services) remains low.
For long-term investors, awareness of the climate strategy pursued by those companies in which they invest is of the utmost importance. Meeting this objective was what led to the inception of the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), the largest international group of shareholders worldwide. The CDP is supported by 475 institutional investors with assets under management totalling USD 55 trillion.
This year, the Ethos Foundation and Pictet Asset Management have conducted the CDP survey for the 100 biggest capitalisations of the Swiss stock market for the third time. The analysis of responses to this survey is the subject of the report published today.
Below are a few highlights of the CDP 2009 survey for Switzerland:
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Only 56% of the companies contacted were willing to participate in the survey. Although consistent with the international average, this share is, however, much lower than the rate of data disclosure by the UK (95%) and South Africa (68%), the two top ranking countries in this respect.
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37% of the Swiss companies having participated in the survey declined public access to their data; however, the share of reluctant companies has dropped (from 47% in 2008).
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72% of Swiss companies see climate change as an opportunity rather than a risk; however, the detailed responses suggests that this optimistic assessment, heartening as it is, is unfortunately not always explained.
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This year, more companies (72% against 64% in 2008) accounted for their direct CO2 emissions, but still very few calculated and disclosed their indirect emissions - e.g. relating to the use of their products and services.
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Analysis of the entire value chain shows that companies do not always focus their efforts on the aspects of their operations which have the greatest impact on climate.
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The Climate Disclosure Leadership Index (CDLI), calculated for Switzerland for the first time, shows that the best results were achieved by Swiss Re, Novartis, BEKB, UBS, Geberit, Credit Suisse and Georg Fischer. This index primarily evaluates companies' level of disclosure and the quality of related reports, but not their actual carbon footprint. This is why companies in the financial sector, which rarely gauge indirect emissions from their operations but have effective communication strategies, score rather high. Moreover, large companies with an international reach, which often have subsidiaries subject to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, seem to have a clear advantage on carbon disclosure.
