62% of Nifty50 cos have climate goals, shows analysis by advisory firm

More than half of the Nifty-50 companies have set climate goals, including net zero or carbon neutrality targets, according to September 2024 disclosures analysed by proxy advisory firm Institutional Investor Advisory Services (IiAS).

 

The IiAS report found that 31, or 62 per cent, of the Nifty-50 companies have either a net zero or a carbon neutrality target. Among these, companies with commitments to both goals have chosen the more stringent net zero target.

 

The list of 31 companies includes IT firm Infosys, which has been carbon neutral since 2020, IiAS noted.

 

Of the 31 companies, 20 have net zero targets, while 11 have carbon neutrality targets. Four companies have disclosed both net zero and intermediate carbon neutrality targets.

 

 

For the remaining 19 companies with no commitment to either net zero or carbon neutrality, some have articulated a decarbonisation strategy, the IiAS report mentioned.

 

Excluding Infosys, the earliest carbon neutrality target is for Cipla in 2025, while the farthest is for Maruti Suzuki in 2070, the report said.

 

A business can achieve carbon neutrality by offsetting its emissions through the purchase of carbon credits outside its value chain, without reducing its own emissions. Carbon neutrality typically applies to a defined part of business operations and accounts only for carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

 

In contrast, a net zero target requires a company to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions—including CO2, methane, and sulphur dioxide—across its supply chain, making it a more stringent goal. The earliest net zero target is set by Tata Consultancy Services for 2030, while NTPC aims to achieve net zero by 2070.

 

The median year for the 31 companies with climate goals is 2040. Among these, the median year for the 20 companies with net zero targets is 2040, while for the 11 companies with carbon neutrality targets, it is 2032.

 

The proxy advisory firm noted that Coal India, the country’s largest miner and part of the hard-to-abate sector, is the only company in the Nifty-50 data set that has not disclosed climate targets.

 

Sector-wise, three of the ten financial sector companies have disclosed a target year, with State Bank of India aiming to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030. All six IT services companies have disclosed net zero targets.

 

In the public sector, two of the four firms—Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) and NTPC—have disclosed net zero targets for 2040 and 2070, respectively.