What's Happening in Sustainability & ESG (Week Recap 02.09 - 08.09) 🌎

This week’s read time: 7 minutes

Welcome to this edition of Green Digest, where you will get updated about everything happening in the Sustainability & ESG space in less than 10 minutes. 🌎

We go through tons of articles and data from the most reliable sources, filter & simplify them, and serve them to you in bite-sized chunks every week. 🍀

In this edition, we’ll cover:

• Spain passed a national climate emergency plan introducing mandatory carbon reporting and transition plans for around 4,000 entities 🇪🇸

• California Air Resources Board issued new draft guidance to help companies prepare climate risk reports 🇺🇸

• The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) launched a draft version of its Net-Zero Standard for the power sector 📑

• ISO and the GHG Protocol launched a partnership to harmonize global GHG measurement and reporting standards 📑

• Microsoft now dominates the carbon removals market, accounting for about 92% of purchases in the first half of 2025 🟢

• and other news 🌍

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THIS WEEK’S TOP NEWS

Regulatory Oversight & Industry Insights

🇪🇸 Spain passed a national climate emergency plan introducing mandatory carbon reporting and transition plans for around 4,000 entities, including large companies and public bodies. Firms must disclose 2025 Scope 1 and 2 emissions starting next year, add Scope 3 by 2028, and from 2026 publish five-year decarbonization strategies with double materiality assessments and measurable targets. The law, seen as a potential substitute for the delayed EU CSRD, follows €32 billion in climate damages from floods and wildfires over the past five years and underscores Spain’s push to accelerate resilience and decarbonization efforts.

🇺🇸 With California’s climate disclosure rules taking effect on January 1, 2026, CARB issued new draft guidance to help companies prepare climate risk reports under SB 261. The checklist clarifies that firms can use frameworks like TCFD or IFRS-S2 but must explain inclusions, omissions, and future plans. Reports should cover governance, strategy, risk management, and relevant metrics and targets, though emissions metrics won’t be required until June 2026. CARB also addressed key FAQs: insurers are exempt, reporting year remains flexible, third-party reports (e.g., CDP) can be used if public, and subsidiaries may be consolidated under parent reports. Covering thousands of companies with over $500 million in annual revenues doing business in California, the rules mark one of the broadest climate disclosure mandates in the US.

📑 The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) launched a draft version of its Net-Zero Standard for the power sector, aiming to align utilities with 1.5°C pathways. The draft guidance outlines criteria for setting near- and long-term science-based targets specific to power companies, including decarbonization of generation, phaseout of coal, and deployment of renewables. Open for public consultation until October 2025, the standard is intended to provide utilities with clear, science-based frameworks for net-zero transition plans, supporting investor confidence and accountability in one of the most critical sectors for global decarbonization.

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MORE INTERESTING NEWS

Latest developments, reports, insights, and trends

📑 ISO and the GHG Protocol launched a partnership to harmonize global GHG measurement and reporting standards, aiming to simplify carbon accounting, reduce reporting burdens, and provide consistency for companies and policymakers. The agreement will merge their existing standards, including ISO’s 1406X series and GHG Protocol’s Corporate, Scope 2, and Scope 3 standards, into co-branded international frameworks, while also co-developing new standards such as a product carbon footprint methodology. Supported by the ISSB, the initiative is expected to create a unified global language for emissions accounting, improving data quality, comparability, and transparency to drive more effective climate action and informed investment decisions.

🇪🇺 The European Commission will propose new measures by year-end to prevent foreign producers, particularly in China, from dodging its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which takes effect in January on imports like steel, aluminium, cement, and fertilisers. The tariff is meant to level the playing field with EU manufacturers who already pay for emissions, but officials fear companies could game the system by sending low-carbon goods to Europe while keeping high-carbon production for other markets. Options under consideration include assigning fixed CO₂ values per country or company and expanding the levy to downstream products. Industry groups back tougher rules, though foreign firms may resist losing credit for their individual emissions reductions.

WHAT ARE COMPANIES DOING?

Corporate sustainability, new tools and services & companies in the news

🟢 Microsoft now dominates the carbon removals market, accounting for about 92% of purchases in the first half of 2025 and $8 billion of the $9.5 billion spent to date, far ahead of rivals Amazon and Google. Its deals span direct air capture projects in North America, underground waste storage with start-up Vaulted Deep, and carbon capture from Oslo’s Hafslund Celsio, alongside nature-based initiatives like Amazon rainforest restoration. Credits from engineered removals average $180 per tonne, compared to $35 for nature-based projects. Microsoft’s emissions have risen more than 20% this decade due to AI and cloud expansion, and it plans to use a portfolio of credits to meet its 2030 “carbon negative” target. While its leadership has brought visibility to carbon markets, experts caution the sector remains costly, unproven at scale, and overly reliant on one dominant buyer.

📑 Swiss Re will no longer seek SBTi validation for its climate targets but says its net-zero-by-2050 strategy remains unchanged. The move follows US political pressure on SBTi’s new FINZ Standard, which asks financial firms to disclose fossil-fuel policies and curb financing to expansion activities. Swiss Re didn’t give a reason, noting it will proceed under its own Climate Transition Plan: net-zero underwriting by 2050 with interim goals, including 50% by 2025 and 100% by 2030 of oil & gas premiums coming from companies committed to net zero, and a continued focus on supporting clients’ transitions.

🌳 Netflix signed a 15-year deal with the American Forest Foundation (AFF) to purchase carbon credits from its Fields & Forests project, which converts underused fields in the US South into forests. The initiative supports small family landowners by covering planting costs, providing technical support, and offering annual payments, making carbon markets more accessible. Netflix’s investment, including milestone-based prepayments, will fund the first 6,000 acres and help expand the project toward its 75,000-acre goal by 2032, expected to generate 4.8 million credits.

⚡️ Apollo and RWE formed a joint venture with Apollo committing €3.2 billion ($3.8 billion) to fund Germany’s transmission grid expansion. The JV, controlled by RWE, will hold RWE’s 25.1% stake in Amprion, which operates the grid across seven federal states serving 29 million people. Amprion plans a major decade-long investment program to strengthen infrastructure critical for Germany’s energy transition.

EVERYTHING FINANCE

Sustainable finance, funding rounds, acquisitions & private equity deals

📈 Dutch pension fund PFZW, managing €248 billion, pulled €29 billion in mandates from BlackRock, LGIM, and AQR as it shifts to a more sustainability- and active management–focused strategy. Under its Investment Policy 2030, PFZW weighs return, risk, and sustainability equally, emphasizing Paris-aligned investments, measurable social value, and active stewardship. The fund cut its equity portfolio from 3,500 to around 800 companies and selected managers such as Robeco, Lazard, Schroders, UBS, and PGGM. Sustainability improvements include raising its Paris Alignment score to 30% (from 23%) and cutting portfolio carbon intensity to 73 versus 249 for the market index.

In related news, BlackRock criticized both Republican and Democrat state officials for politicizing public pension fund management, warning it ultimately harms retirees. The firm’s response followed dueling letters from 26 Republican and 17 Democrat finance officials offering opposing views of fiduciary duty—Republicans urging BlackRock to drop climate risk considerations, Democrats pushing it to strengthen commitments to long-term risks like climate change and supply chains. BlackRock stressed its fiduciary duty to clients, saying it acts as an engaged but not activist shareholder, avoids collective action with others, and complies with regulations. The firm noted federal regulators, including FERC, recently reaffirmed its non-activist status, rejecting challenges from Republican attorneys general and advocacy groups.

🤝🏻 Position Green, a Nordic sustainability software and advisory firm, acquired Brussels-based Greenomy, a provider of ESG reporting and compliance solutions. The acquisition strengthens Position Green’s EU regulatory reporting capabilities, particularly for CSRD, EU Taxonomy, and SFDR compliance, while expanding its customer base across financial institutions and corporates.

🤝🏻 One Click LCA, a provider of life-cycle assessment and carbon management software, acquired SimaPro and its parent company PRé Sustainability, expanding its carbon footprint solutions across industries. The deal unites two leading players in LCA software, creating a comprehensive platform that enables companies to assess, compare, and reduce environmental impacts across products and supply chains. 

Funding rounds:

🟢 Puro.earth, a carbon crediting platform, raised €11.25 million ($12.8 million) to expand its operations and scale durable carbon removal solutions. The financing round will enable Puro.earth to accelerate methodologies, boost digital MRV capabilities, and strengthen its marketplace for verified carbon removal credits.

♻️ Xampla, a UK-based startup developing natural alternatives to plastics, raised $14 million to scale its plant-based material solutions aimed at replacing single-use plastics. The funding round will support the commercialization of Xampla’s biodegradable materials that mimic the strength and flexibility of conventional plastics without harmful environmental impacts.

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