To what extent the UK emissions disclosure mandate of 2013 impacted the subsequent emissions level and ESG ratings?

Abstract

This research thesis aims at assessing the impact of the Companies Act 2006 (Strategic Report and Directors’ Report) Regulations 2013 on UK-incorporated listed firms’ subsequent level of emissions and ESG ratings. A difference-in-difference approach has been implemented to assess the effect of the mandate between a treatment group composed by UKincorporated listed firms and a control group composed by other European listed peers. Data concerning Scope 1 GHG emission levels for each company have been obtained using the EUTL registry. Results show that firms subject to the mandate reduced their GHGs emissions by 15% on average, compared to the control group. Additionally, the analysis points out that treated firms experience a significant positive effect on their aggregate ESG ratings, Social ratings and Innovation scores, after the introduction of the mandate. On the other hand, no significant effect has been observed on Environmental and Governance ratings. Future researches might improve the completeness and generalizability of the analysis, including also Scope 2 emissions and repeating the analysis with ESG Ratings from different agencies.