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Executive Summary CDP overview


CDP is an independent not-for-profit organization that has been working, since 2000, to collect companies’ data on climate change strategy, GHG emissions’ disclosure and water use. The CDP was founded to put information on companies’ climate change strategies and GHG emissions management at the heart of financial and policy decision-making. The authority behind CDP’s information request lies in its list of investor signatories which has grown from 35 investors with assets of US$4.5 trillion under management in 2003 to 551 in 2011 with assets of US$71 trillion under management.


CDP conveys the information to its 551 investor signatories, as well as distributing it throughout the global market place, both to increase transparency around climate-related investment risk and commercial opportunity and to drive investment towards a low carbon economy. In order to better assess and compare companies’ responses, CDP developed a methodology that scores companies on the quality of their disclosure and performance on actions they take to mitigate climate change. The highest scoring companies per sample are recognized in two indexes: the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index (CDLI) and the Carbon Performance Leadership Index (CPLI). In 2011 more than 3,000 companies have been scored according to the CDP methodology, making CDP the largest existing database for corporate climate data.


CDP 2011 in Italy


This report will especially focus on carbon measurement and reporting - the crucial first steps towards carbon management and the backbone to any robust and credible carbon strategy - and emission reduction initiatives.


The Italian companies invited to respond to CDP 2011 are the 100 largest companies, by market capitalization, on the Italian stock exchange. The first country specific report was published in 2008 with responses from 18 companies, managing more than 220 MtCO2e. The current report represents the management of almost 258 MtCO2e (Scope 1 emissions) from 35 companies.


Companies were scored according to the CDP methodology explained in the CDP 2011 Reporting Guidance and available to all through the CDP website. Kyoto Club is the scorer for the Italy 100 sample.


Overview of results


The number of Italian companies responding to CDP has increased significantly, from 21 in 2010 to 35 in 2011. The increased number of respondents of course adds value to the overall results, making the sample more representative. Nevertheless the response rate (35%) has not increased. The highest response rate in the Italy 100 sample comes from the Utility sector followed by the Energy, Materials and Telecommunications sectors.


Management


Most companies declare that climate change has been integrated into the fundamental pillars of management: overall strategy, risk management and employees’ reward. Responsibility for climate change management is assigned, in almost all responding companies (29), at least to senior management level, proving that basic sustainability practices such as carbon reporting are becoming integrated into the way business is done, both strategically and operationally. One of the questions in the CDP 2011 asks whether climate change is integrated in business strategy: 82% (27) of companies responding answered in the affirmative.


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Calculation and reporting of carbon emissions have become common practice, but only few companies provide data on non CO2 GHG emissions. Third party verification/ assurance has also become common: 24 companies have some verification on Scope 1 emissions.


Companies in the Italy 100 sample report almost 258 MtCO2e of Scope 1 emissions and almost 11 MtCO2e of Scope 2 emissions. Both values are in line with last year (249 MtCO2e for Scope 1 and 9.5 MtCO2e for Scope 2). Scope 3 emissions count for about 300 MtCO2e, 10% less than last year.


As far as performance is concerned, responding companies are almost equally divided between those which succeeded in decreasing their emissions and those whose emissions increased in 2011. When significant decreases have been reported these are in most cases the result of specific reduction initiatives, while increases are due to changes in both company reporting and system boundaries. 91% (30) of responding companies reported having emissions’ reduction initiatives in place. This is higher than the proportion of companies with an emissions reduction target (67%): it seems that the importance of reducing emissions is somehow translated into actions before becoming a formal commitment. 186 emissions’ reduction initiatives (mainly related to energy efficiency, transportation and low carbon energy) have been reported.


Risks and Opportunities


79% (26) of companies consider climate change is a source of opportunities related to regulation, changes in physical parameters and other possible climate-related developments. Regulation is the most important driver for both risks and opportunities. Companies identify more than 250 different risk events related to climate change, with 10 companies – from 5 different sectors – foreseeing


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