Reporting Portfolio Emissions By Asset Managers
Key Takeaways: Asset managers frequently commit to collect and report on the greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions generated by their portfolio companies, often referred to as “portfolio” or “financed” emissions. An asset manager’s underlying investors may request this data, or the asset manager may be required to collect this data by law or as part of […]
Posted by Patricia Volhard, John Young, and Ulysses Smith, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, on Saturday, April 5, 2025
Editor's Note:
Patricia Volhard is a Partner, John Young is a Counsel, and Ulysses Smith is an ESG Senior Advisor at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP. This post is based on a Debevoise memorandum by Ms. Volhard, Mr. Young, Mr. Smith, and Alfie Scott.
Key Takeaways:
- Asset managers frequently commit to collect and report on the greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions generated by their portfolio companies, often referred to as “portfolio” or “financed” emissions. An asset manager’s underlying investors may request this data, or the asset manager may be required to collect this data by law or as part of its membership of a voluntary industry initiative.
- This In Depth considers the frameworks under which an asset manager commonly collects and reports on its portfolio emissions. In particular, asset managers should familiarize themselves with the methodologies for measuring GHG emissions under the PCAF standard when measuring and reporting on their portfolio emissions.
- It also considers some of the practical issues that arise and possible solutions. For example, asset managers may choose to adopt a phased-in approach to reporting their portfolio emissions, prioritizing data collection and reporting for particular sectors where data is relatively easy to obtain or where emissions are relatively high.
