Executive Summary


Participation Continues to Grow


The level of participation in the Carbon Disclosure Project increased again and now includes 33 Irish companies1 in 2011, up from a total of 29 last year and 16 in 20092


page 36 for details of who responded and Figure 2 for year on year response trends.


The 33 respondents include: • 19 of the largest companies by market capitalisation listed on the Irish Stock Exchange (ISEQ), one fewer than last year;


• 72


unlisted organisations that are large emitters taking part in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme; and


• 7 others that chose to respond.


In addition, 4 leading multinational corporations registered in Ireland are also CDP respondents.


Figure 2 illustrates the Irish response rate over the last three years.


Ireland vs Elsewhere


There is an increase in the overall number of Irish companies responding to CDP in 2011. The response rate among the 40 largest companies listed on the Irish Stock Exchange is 48% which is slightly lower than 2010. This


. See Appendix 2,


rate is just ahead of the response rate among the 50 largest companies in New Zealand but behind larger groups of companies in Australia, Canada and Scandinavia. The Irish response rate is also well behind the 350 largest in the UK FTSE, the 500 largest in the US S&P and the 500 largest globally (at 69%, 68% and 81% respectively). See Appendix 1, page 34 for details.


Key Findings


A key theme from all respondents in 2011 is the ‘tone at the top’ and the influence this can have on the wider organisation. 23 out of 32 Irish respondents (72%) reported that responsibility for climate change issues facing their company rests at Board level, demonstrating that climate change continues to be an issue of significant importance to Irish companies.


The levels of disclosure in the 2011 Irish CDP responses varies widely, with some respondents choosing to include minimal data (potentially a ‘tick the box’ exercise), whilst others included detailed responses and company specific information.


Quality of measurement criteria is vital to the effectiveness of any management process; rigorous metrics are hence an important focus both for business managers and for investors.


Figure 2: Irish Response Rate over the Last Three Years


3 4


4 3


12 2009 2010 2011 1


Irish companies discussed in this report include ones listed on the Irish stock exchange (including some also listed elsewhere), significant participants in Ireland’s portion of the EU ETS (including state- owned businesses and subsidiaries of companies based elsewhere), and others that choose to respond (including one government agency).


2


Responses were received from 8 organisations taking part in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, of which only one is listed on the ISEQ. One respondent provided information but did not answer questions in the questionnaire. Statistics and charts in this 2011 report are therefore based on responses of the 32 companies, 7 of them in the EU ETS group, that completed the questionnaire.


11


20 6


7 4


19 7


Irish Stock Exchange listed companies Unlisted large participants in the EU-ETS Multi-national businesses registered in Ireland Other Irish responding corporations


48%


of the 40 largest companies by market capitalisation listed on the ISEQ responded to CDP’s request for information, ahead of the rate among the 50 largest in New Zealand, but behind larger groups in Australia, Canada and well behind the Global 500.


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