ESG Reporting with PAS Financial Advisory
This is how we support your company in sustainability reporting
- Detailed knowledge of the regulatory requirements for your company
- Support regarding the materiality analysis
- Preparation of effective and legally compliant ESG reporting
- Implementation and/or optimization of your internal ESG reporting processes in terms of data conception and procurement
- Expertise from numerous ESG reference projects
CSR reporting requirements: What your company needs to know
In any case, all companies must promptly gain an overview of the data and data sources available in the company as well as any limitations and gaps in order to be able to fulfill the regulatory reporting requirements.
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is intended to ensure that companies disclose reliable and comparable information in order to guide investment in more sustainable business models and companies. Under this reporting requirement, data on corporate activities and their impact in the environmental, social and governance areas are disclosed.
The CSRD came into force on January 5, 2023 and expands the previous requirements for sustainability reports under the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD), in particular to include the following aspects:
- Extended, standardized reporting obligation based on predefined KPIs: To strengthen the measurability and comparability of the information, the EU Commission is currently drawing up a framework for sustainability reports, the ESRS (European Sustainability Reporting Standards).
- Anchoring of dual materiality: According to this, companies are obliged to report both on the impact of its own business operations on people and the environment, and on the impact of sustainability aspects on the company.
- Mandatory part of the management report: Sustainability reporting will become an integral part of the management report.
- Mandatory audit: Sustainability reporting is subject to external auditing. The EU Commission defines the relevant auditing standards.
- European Single Electronic Format: Sustainability reports of certain capital market-oriented companies fall under the requirements of the European Single Electronic Format (ESEF).
The obligation to report on sustainability in the annual management report on the basis of the renewed CSRD affects all listed companies (except micro-enterprises) as well as companies that meet two of the following size criteria:
- At least 250 employees on average per year
- At least 20 million euros in total assets
- At least 40 million euros in sales
The group of companies affected will gradually expand over the next few years.
- for fiscal years beginning on or after January 1, 2024: public interest entities with more than 500 employees,
- for fiscal years beginning on or after January 1, 2025: all other large companies under accounting law,
- for fiscal years beginning on or after January 1, 2026: capital market-oriented small and medium-sized enterprises (so-called SMEs), unless they make use of the option to defer until 2028.
It should be noted that in future, comparative figures from the previous year will also have to be provided and companies should not wait until the financial year of mandatory application to implement the CSRD.
The EU's Taxonomy for sustainable business activities provides standard definitions of whether and to what extent economic activities can be classified as sustainable. Companies that will be affected by the new CSR Directive must therefore disclose the extent to which their activities are sustainable within the meaning of these EU environmental objectives.
In the scope of the EU Taxonomy Regulation fall as of fiscal year 2025companies that meet two of the following size criteria:
- At least 250 employees on an annual average
- At least 25 million euros in total assets
- At least 50 million euros in revenues
The key figures in sustainability reporting are determined on the basis of the EU taxonomy. The preparation of taxonomy-compliant information can be divided into five main steps:
- First, you need to identify the business activities of your company
- Then, for each business activity, check whether it is associated with a taxonomy activity ("taxonomy-eligible").
- For the identified taxonomy-eligible business activities, check
- whether it makes a significant contribution to one of the six environmental goals
- whether it does not cause significant harm (DNSH) to any of the other objectives, and
- whether it meets the minimum protection requirements.
- For the taxonomy-compliant activities, you then calculate your financial ratios, i.e. their share
- of sales,
- of capital expenditures, and
- of the operating expenses.
- Finally, you disclose this determined taxonomy-compliant information in the final report (sustainability reporting).
ESG: Key challenges at a glance
- To meet regulatory requirements or comply with voluntary frameworks, many companies need to improve their data quality.
- Without a central source of financial and sustainability data, it is impossible to draw a clear link between ESG measures and financial results, or to paint a picture of ESG profits and expenses.
- Sustainability is a broad topic with many facets (e.g., sustainable production, supply chain balance, responsible human resources, data controls, governance).
- To manage risks, they must be identifiable and quantifiable.
- Monitoring risks is difficult and impossible without a data-driven as well as technology-enabled risk management approach.
- With the right management tools, ESG data can be used to improve the impact and outcomes of ESG plans and activities.
- However, without ESG data in the same software as budgeting, planning, financial statement, and consolidation data, scenarios cannot be run to identify the potential impact of an ESG activity on the balance sheet, P&L, or cash flow to drive strategy.
- In addition to the several complex EU directives (CSRD, CS3D, etc.), many external financial instruments are also subject to strict sustainability requirements.
- The requirements must be implemented in a timely manner, as they are largely accompanied by comprehensive auditing obligations.
- An analysis of the status quo of the ESG data situation as well as the identification and closing of data gaps is essential, at the latest with regard to the regulatory requirements.
PAS ESG Solutions
ESG data management
- Affected party analysis with regard to regulatory requirements
- Analysis of the status quo of your ESG data
- Identification of data gaps
- Conceptual design of a target data structure and necessary data acquisition
- Software selection for ESG data collection and management
Management of ESG risks
- Materiality analysis (incl. risk analysis)
- Concept for identification and quantification of ESG risks
- Concepts for risk mitigation
- Approaches for regular monitoring of risks
ESG performance
- Best practice templates for ESG management reports
- Integration of ESG reporting into your standard reporting processes
- Establishing an integrated system landscape: ESG data in the same software as, for example, budgeting, planning, financial statement and consolidation data
ESG reporting
- Best practice templates for external ESG reporting
- Support for the preparation of EU taxonomy reporting
- Support for the preparation of sustainability reporting according to CSRD
Sustainable Finance
You can find our solutions for financial institutions under Sustainable Finance & ESG
PAS ESG lexicon
ESG
The division of a company's sustainability-related responsibilities into 3 areas:
- Environmental, e.g., climate, environmental protection, resource scarcity.
- Social, e.g. human rights, employees, occupational health and safety, demographic change
- Governance, e.g. management and control processes, compliance, supervisory structures.
This classification is intended to make the company's efforts measurable and documentable.
CSR
NFRD
The current CSRD extends these reporting requirements and the scope of application and replaces the NFRD.
CSR-RUG
CSRD
The directive came into force on January 5, 2023. The new regulations must be implemented by the member states 18 months later.
EU-Taxonomie
The taxonomy defines a uniform terminology and key figures that are published in companies' sustainability reports.
Sustainability information thus becomes more transparent and comparable.
CSDDD
LkSG
SFDR
Sustainable Finance
ESRS
The ESRS determine the content of sustainability reports based on the CSRD.
ISSB
Website of the ISSB: IFRS - International Sustainability Standards Board
IFRS S1 und S2
The ISSB publishes the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards (IFRS S).
The first two standards IFRS S1 General requirements for the disclosure of sustainability-related financial information and IFRS S2 Climate-related disclosures were published on June 26, 2023.
PAS at a glance
Unsere Service Lines
In our Financial Advisory division we are active in the areas of Financial Reporting, Finance Optimization, Transaction Services and Financial Service Solutions. Innovative solutions coupled with a high level of expertise and outstanding reliability are the hallmarks of our consultants.
