ESG - Sustainable Reporting

What is sustainability reporting? 

Sustainability reporting is making public information about a company’s management of environmental (Environmental), social (Social) and governance (Governance) factors, it is also called ESG, non-financial or non-financial reporting.

Who must report?

1.Companies that were obliged to report so-called CSR, i.e. obliged to disclose non-financial information meeting at least two of the three requirements:

• with more than 500 employees,
• more than PLN 85 million in total financial assets or
• 170 million of net revenue (Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on the disclosure of non-financial and diversity information – Non Financial Reporting Directive – in short NFRD which will soon be replaced by Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

2.Companies operating in the finance area, which from March 2021 must also report due to the SFDR (Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation). According to SFDR requirements, financial market participants must disclose non-financial data on a website, before entering into a contract, and include it in financial statements.

3.Companies and institutions covered by the requirements of the Taxonomy (Delegated Regulation of the European Commission to Regulation 2020/852).

Source: www.gresb.com

Other requirements for sustainability reporting 

Along with the ESG and Taxonomy requirements, we can mention other guidelines/documents that impose actions to minimize the impact of global economies on environmental issues and the issue of reporting systems, among others.

• The EU Green Deal (the primary guiding document for the EU; sets short, medium and long term goals and reporting on progress),
• The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development – 17 Sustainable Development Goals – guidelines on climate, sociological aspects, fight against inequalities, etc,
• EU Green Bonds (Green Bonds) – Green Bonds aim at: use of funds for one of the specified sectors, process of evaluation and selection of projects, management of funds, reporting,
• reporting standards according to different systems (GRI/GRESB/PRI/CDP/PRI/other),
• other European directives and global standards.

Summary

Non-financial reporting and long-term climate change plans and strategies will have an impact on obtaining capital and financing projects. Climate aspects are becoming an increasingly important part of investment decisions, especially when considered over a long-term horizon.

The role of JW+A

JW+A assists business partners in developing a reporting strategy that defines, in a structured way, the next steps, the degree of urgency and the tasks for the different parties (Owner, Asset Manager, Manager, Technician, Tenants, etc.).

Reporting can take many forms, there is no single standard. As a JW+A team we are able to adapt the strategy to the specific Client. For non-reporting organizations, it is possible to perform compliance activities in the event of a potential sale of a building to a reporting entity.

The JW+A team creates reporting strategies to prepare the company for these requirements together with the investor, and to plan ESG and taxonomy reporting in a way that is consistent with the company’s growth.