YOUR NEED TO KNOW UPDATES FROM CDP IN 2025

Several reporting platforms exist, and CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) is at the forefront of assessing corporate commitments and progress in sustainability for businesses operating globally, and has been for more than 20 years.

Submissions to CDP are on an annual basis and typically include assessments against the following criteria:

• Governance and strategy
• Greenhouse gas (ghg) emissions
• Emissions reduction targets
• Environmental risks and opportunities
• Supply chain management
• Energy and resource use

Taking account of the submissions made across a wide variety of themes, enables investors to gain real insights into the trends and performance of companies at both the sectoral level and individual level. This helps show the progress made by the “movers and shakers”, accordingly.

As with many long-standing sustainability reporting platforms, the underlying methodologies adapt and evolve as new requirements on disclosures arise, or improvements to the granularity of data available for reporting materialises. When starting out, CDP did not cover all the themes that it now covers! Failure to adapt to these methodologies could lead to a drop in a company’s CDP score, which in turn, may raise concerns among investors, stakeholders, and consumers, and signal weaker environmental performance or transparency issues. In today's sustainability-driven market, lower scores may impact investor confidence, as ESG-focused funds prioritise companies demonstrating strong climate leadership and supply chain partners and customers committed to sustainable resourcing could reassess their relationships.

Here, Bureau Veritas, experts in sustainability reporting and assurance, investigate some of the challenges of last year’s CDP submissions and the implications for 2025 submissions.

This made 2024 one of the most demanding years to date, with numerous companies seeing a decline in their CDP scores, when compared to previous years.

The updated scoring methodology introduced more rigorous criteria to better reflect wider market trends. More importantly, they help to remain in line with CDP’s 2021-2025 strategy and its strategic priorities to track an organisations transition to align with a 1.5 degree world.

what were some of the notable changes that impacted businesses most? 

Essential criteria, only a requirement for the A-list in prior years, was added which contributed to lower scoring levels. For example, in GHG emission monitoring, the updated scoring methodology required companies throughout scoring levels to report on scope 3 emissions from supply chains, business travel, and product lifecycle impacts. This is in addition to the requirement for reported emissions across all Scopes to be verified, and the alignment of emissions reduction goals with science-based targets.

Previously, a leadership-level criterion related to supply chain engagement, now became a mandatory requirement at a wider range of levels with companies now expected to demonstrate active engagement with suppliers on climate-related risks and emissions reductions.

There were also more stringent expectations for identifying and addressing physical and transitional climate risks, ensuring businesses understood their exposure and had proactive mitigation strategies.

Alignment with Global Frameworks such as TNFD, IFRS, and CSRD, once prioritised for A List companies, were also incorporated into broader scoring methodologies.

In addition to these scoring methodology changes, the move from three questionnaires to a unified questionnaire encompassing climate, forests, and water security, required organisations to adopt a more comprehensive approach to their CDP disclosure. Furthermore, the removal of the standalone supply chain module necessitated a shift in reporting strategies, requiring businesses to integrate supply chain data throughout their submissions.

These challenges undoubtedly contributed to the high percentage (45%) of companies which scored C or lower for their climate change submission.

CDP’s evolving requirements mean that an essential part of this year’s efforts should be reflection on 2024 submissions, and the analysis of any gaps and areas for improvement. Addressing these gaps, and ultimately developing a well-rounded submission, may require companies to revisit CDP data collection and reporting strategies. This is likely to demand collaboration among various teams within an organisation, as relevant data is often scattered across departments and ownership structures.

Bureau Veritas’ sector expertise, and in-depth knowledge in ESG reporting and the CDP process enables us to effectively support clients in their efforts to navigate evolving reporting requirements and strive for improved performance. As a previous global scoring partner to CDP, and as a member of CDP A-List, the Bureau Veritas approach is grounded with an extensive knowledge of CDP reporting requirements, the scoring methodology and our own proven approach for advisory solutions. This enables us to deliver an outcome-oriented deliverable resulting in improved CDP performance beyond 2025.

This includes:

• Detailed gap assessments of past CDP submissions help uncover missed opportunities, areas for improvement and actionable recommendations.
• Supporting clients to fully understand the latest guidance, methodology, and online reporting system.
• Supporting in drafting and refining the qualitative and quantitative disclosures of the 2025 CDP submission, including their alignment with internal policies, procedures and initiatives in their submission.
• Interviewing the internal stakeholders such subject matter experts, data and process owners to retrieve relevant, accurate and reliable information for the CDP submissions.

Taking a proactive approach is key to maximising your score in 2025, and Bureau Veritas is ready to guide you every step of the way.

WEBINAR: CDP REPORTING UPDATE 2025