VCMI welcomes SBTi consultation on Corporate Net Zero Standard

The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has today announced a consultation on revisions to its Corporate Net Zero Standard. We welcome SBTi’s ongoing commitment to establishing ambitious and impactful approaches to corporate decarbonization targets. VCMI’s complementary work is designed to ensure high-integrity carbon markets are put to work, responsibly and effectively, to encourage more companies to take impactful action more quickly.  

It is vital that together we collectively deliver the clarity and consistency businesses need to continue making progress towards net zero emissions and catalyse lasting climate action and deliver on the goals of the Paris Agreement.  

In the consultation SBTi recognizes the persistent challenges faced by businesses in reducing scope 3 emissions. It will explore different approaches to target setting for scope 3 and making progress against those targets, in addition to incentives for companies to address on-going emissions through climate mitigation activities beyond their direct value chain.   

VCMI’s scope 3 guidance, which will be released at the end of April, is designed to fill the gap which has been identified by SBTi: it delivers a high-integrity, practical solution to close the scope 3 emissions gap, by complementing decarbonization with high-quality carbon credits.  

Corporate climate action is rarely a linear process, especially when confronted with the complexity of scope 3 emissions, so it is crucial that businesses are provided with frameworks that support them to advance towards climate goals through range of tools.  

High-quality carbon credits have an under-utilised role in helping companies address their scope 3 emissions. Companies need a range of levers to pull, and when underpinned with greater transparency and accountability in the process, carbon credits can unlock the step change in emissions reductions so urgently required. Clear guidance will accelerate corporate engagement and channel vital private sector finance to where it’s needed most, driving us towards a net zero economy. 

We will review the SBTi consultation in detail and contribute constructively to the process. Our goal is to ensure everyone engaged in delivering climate action is able to make progress so that we can deliver the speed and scale that’s required.

– Mark Kenber, Executive Director, VCMI 

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