EU Taxonomy Reporting: First look at the 2022 reported alignment of 400 European companies

The numbers are in! Companies are taking the EU Taxonomy regulation seriously and are actively working to align with it.

As the world becomes increasingly aware of the impact of climate change, companies in the European Union are under more pressure than ever to align their practices with the EU Taxonomy regulation. This regulation aims to establish a common language for sustainable finance by setting out criteria for what can be considered an environmentally sustainable economic activity. For the first time this year, large European listed companies must disclose their 2022 alignment with the regulation.

We have analyzed the data from 400 companies that reported their 2022 alignment. Our analysis shows that a portfolio of these companies would see an increase in alignment from 1.5% (using reported data from 2021) to 10.5% (with reported data from 2022).

Following the trend of the previous year, utilities remains the sector with the most alignment in 2022. Furthermore, a higher CAPEX alignment than revenue alignment among utilities and energy companies confirms that a shift towards greener practices is taking place.

The clear leader from the utility sector is EDP Renovaveis, with more than 99% of their revenue and CAPEX aligned. By contrast, Uniper, one of the largest European utilities in terms of revenue, reports the lowest alignment among those in the utility sector. 

While not many real estate companies are reporting EU Taxonomy data, the sector shows, on average, a high alignment figure of 27%, with Instone Real Estate and Catena being the frontrunners. On the other hand, the industrial sector had +100 companies report alignment, with Vestas and Alfen standing out within the subindustry of heavy electrical equipment. Both companies had over 95% of their revenue aligned, with Vestas focusing on wind energy equipment manufacturing and Alfen specializing in EV charging equipment, smart grid solutions, and energy storage.

It is clear from this data that companies are taking the EU Taxonomy regulation seriously and are making an effort to align their practices with it. We continually monitor the data reported by companies to ensure the maximum coverage of reported data to our users.