Net Zero Stocktake Report 2022

Net zero is the dominant lens through which countries, states and regions, cities and companies approach decarbonisation. With global coverage of net zero nearly universal at the national level now, the big question is whether a sufficient proportion of targets across the wider economy acquire measures of robustness quickly enough to keep the Paris Agreement 1.5°C target within reach.
The Net Zero Stocktake 2022 report — our first comprehensive analysis since Taking Stock over a year ago — shows that target-setting momentum continues and measures of quality are improving, but also that an alarming lack of credibility pervades the entire landscape.

Global coverage skinny

For this report, we drew upon our Net Zero Tracker database of 4,000+ entities, of which we found that 1,181 (including the EU) have net zero targets. Courtesy of the fact that 19 members of the G20 have now signed on, the net zero targets of national governments represent the overwhelming bulk of the global economy and greenhouse gas emissions.

Report highlights

<ul><li>Encouragingly, national net zero targets set in domestic legislation or policy documents have surged — from 10% of total GHG coverage in December 2020 to 65% in June 2022.</li><li>As countries keep setting - and strengthening - commitments, the spotlight falls on those companies (65%), regions (84%) and cities (80%) that are yet to pledge net zero targets.</li><li>Worryingly, more than 75% of national and sub-national governments still do not transparently specify whether they intend to use external offset credits to meet their net zero targets. </li><li>Using the Race to Zero ‘starting line’ criteria as our benchmark—a minimum threshold that is necessary but by no means sufficient—we found that fewer than one-fifth of net zero targets set by national and sub-national governments currently meet minimum procedural standards of robustness. </li></ul>

NZS Governments status and coverage

NZS governments offsets

<ul><li>More than one-third of world’s largest publicly traded companies now have net zero targets, up from one-fifth in December 2020. However, 65% of corporate net zero targets do not yet meet minimum procedural standards of robustness.</li><li>Nearly 40% of the companies intend to use external offsets (carbon credits) to achieve net zero, with less than 2% explicitly ruling out their use. That leaves close to 60% that have not specified whether or not they plan to rely on offsetting.</li><li>Only 38% of companies claim to cover all Scope 3 (value chain) emissions.</li></ul>

NZS companies emission scopes

<ul><li>The global North has set the majority of sub-national targets. Net zero has not yet spread widely beyond high-income countries in North America, Europe, and Asia.</li><li>The number of large cities with net zero targets has doubled since December 2020 — from 115 to 235 — but more than 900 large cities still lack a net zero target.</li></ul>

NZS Global region

<ul><li>The Fossil Fuels industry has the second highest percentage of net zero targets (49%) among those industries with more than ten companies in the Forbes 2000 list. The sectors with the third and fourth highest percentages, respectively, are also GHG-intensive: the Materials industry (e.g. steel and cement) and Transportation Services (e.g. airlines and shipping). </li></ul>

NZS company sectors

<ul><li>Among the 702 Forbes 2000-listed companies with net zero targets, the largest *number* of companies are headquartered in the US (210), followed by Japan (89), the UK (57), France (40) and Germany (33).</li></ul>

NZS G7 companies

<ul><li>The recent wave of corporate long-term target setting has been accompanied by an increasing number of analyses and methodologies to assess or verify such targets. We outline a selection of these, including the <a href="https://sciencebasedtargets.org/net-zero" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SBTi Net-Zero Standard</a> and the <a href="https://newclimate.org/news/qa-with-the-authors-corporate-climate-responsibility-monitor-2022" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Climate Corporate Responsibility Monitor (CCRM)</a>.</li><li>As scrutiny grows and the shadow of regulation lengthens, increasingly those companies without credible targets should become outliers. Civil society, researchers, and policymakers are getting better at separating genuine from greenwash, so gone are the days when misleading net zero targets will not be found out.</li></ul>

As our analysis shows, overall the transparency and integrity of existing net zero pledges are far from sufficient to ensure a timely transition to global net zero GHG emissions to achieve the Paris Agreement’s long-term temperature goal. Across the board, an enormous need for greater standardisation and operationalisation of net zero targets is needed. 
The UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Expert Group on the Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities, launched in March 2022, provides an important opportunity to accelerate the robust operationalisation of net zero targets at the sub-national and corporate level. 
For cities, regions, and countries in the Global South, capacity building and access to finance is going to be critical for transforming net zero pledges into concrete commitments and plans. For the private sector, regulation will ultimately be needed. Indeed, disclosure requirements are either currently mandatory or phasing in across the EU, the UK, and Japan, and are proposed in both the US and China. 
At the same time, the more voluntary mobilisation, <a href="https://climatechampions.unfccc.int/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">orchestration</a>, and standardisation efforts that characterise the current net zero ecosystem can play an important role by forging leadership coalitions that build support for stronger regulations in the future. 
When considering net zero purely from a quantity perspective, there is no question the climate supertanker is turning. Yet the lack of credible, quality targets raises serious doubts if that turn can be sustained.

Assessing the status and trends of net zero target setting across countries, sub-national governments and companies.

Net Zero Stocktake 2022

Post COP26 snapshot 25 11 21

Notes and figures 
Net zero coverage — Countries
When including the net zero target of the European Union as a whole (not just the targets of its individual countries) net zero coverage is slightly higher across the board as of 16 November 2021: 92% for emissions, 93% for GDP and 86% for population.
Planned use of offsets — All entities
The use of offsets (carbon credits) is ill-defined across all entity targets, with 91% of country targets, 78% of regional targets, 79% of city targets and 48% of public company targets failing to specify if - and how - offset credits will be used.
Almost 43% of the world’s largest 632 public company targets, as measured by revenue, plan to use offsets — but two-thirds of that 43% fail to specify any conditions on the use of offsets.
Almost 10% of companies, as measured by revenue, have ruled out using offsets to reach their net zero targets. 
Coverage by scope — Companies
Only 32% of corporate net zero targets cover the entirety of Scope 3 emissions — and 25% of targets only partially cover Scope 3.
Governance indicators — All entities Interim targets indicator: Countries display 100% because all nations with net zero targets have submitted Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with an interim mitigation target. We will be reviewing the value of this country indicator in the near future. 
Green shoots of corporate momentum
Companies setting net zero targets meeting 'minimum procedural standards' have increased in the last year almost two-fold by number (from 110 to 207) and almost four-fold (from $2,148bn to $8,049bn) as measured by revenue. 
Companies meeting both minimum standards and leadership practices — as defined by the UNFCCC's Race to Zero campaign — has doubled in the last year by number (from 11 to 22, and increased 16-fold (from $82bn to $1,345bn) as measured by revenue
 
Data and acknowledgements
Explore our <a href="https://www.zerotracker.net/methodology/">methodology</a> to find out how we collect information on net zero targets. To access the specific data used for this snapshot, please <a href="mailto:hello@zerotracker.net" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">email us</a>, or you can download the most up-to-date data set from our homepage. 
The above graphic was created by the Net Zero Tracker's project lead <a href="https://twitter.com/johnlangab" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">John Lang</a>. 
If referencing for external purposes, please cite as follows: For media: Post-COP26 Snapshot, Net Zero Tracker. Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, Data-Driven EnviroLab, NewClimate Institute, Oxford Net Zero. November, 2021.
For academic publications: Thomas Hale, Takeshi Kuramochi, John Lang, Brendan Mapes, Steve Smith, Ria Aiyer, Richard Black, Mirte Boot, Peter Chalkley, Frederic Hans, Nick Hay, Angel Hsu, Niklas Höhne, Silke Mooldijk, Tristram Walsh. 'Post-COP26 Snapshot', Net Zero Tracker. Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, Data-Driven EnviroLab, NewClimate Institute, Oxford Net Zero. 2021. 
This analysis and other Net Zero Tracker outputs wouldn't be possible without the following volunteers:
<ul><li>Shiemaa Ahmed</li><li>Fatima Arif</li><li>Nina Bengtsson</li><li>Barasha Borthakur</li><li>Samuel Boyer</li><li>Annabel Chantry</li><li>Mia Clement</li><li>Judith Condor-Vidal</li><li>Matthew Doran</li><li>Adriana Elera</li><li>Julian Gonzales</li><li>Manu Gupta</li><li>Jonathan Heale</li><li>Joe Kearney</li><li>Kara Keenan-Wilson</li><li>Maria Lemos Gonzalez</li><li>Amy Leung</li><li>Harry Linehan-Hill</li><li>Lucy Lyons</li><li>Lucy Main</li><li>Esmé McMillan</li><li>Nadia Merghani</li><li>Michelle Midzi</li><li>Sasha Mills</li><li>Joy Nkosi</li><li>Pippa Noble</li><li>Lizeth Palencia</li><li>Aiminayanate Pepple</li><li>Lore Purroy</li><li>Carol Serban</li><li>Bridget Stuart</li><li>Elizabeth Tatham</li><li>Leah Tillmann-Morris</li><li>Maria Torres Santeli Jose</li><li>Allan Torres</li><li>Irene Trung</li><li>Michelle Viotti</li><li>Kun Yan</li><li>Lina Yassin</li></ul>

Now that net zero is almost universal, the era of integrity begins.

Post-COP26 Snapshot

Analysing the quantity, quality and momentum of net zero targets in G20 nations, regions, cities and companies.

G20 Analysis Oct 2021 FINAL

Note: When including the net zero target of the European Union as a whole (not just the targets of its individual countries) net zero coverage is slightly higher across the board as of 27 October 2021: 81% for emissions, 82% for GDP and 61% for population. 
The 'G20: Net zero stocktake', presented by <a href="https://twitter.com/johnlangab" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">John Lang</a>, is the Net Zero Tracker consortium's first analysis. It builds on ECIU and Oxford’s <a href="https://eciu.net/analysis/reports/2021/taking-stock-assessment-net-zero-targets" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Taking Stock</a> report and the <a href="https://newclimate.org/2020/10/22/navigating-the-nuances-of-net-zero-targets/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Navigating the Nuances of Net Zero</a> report by the NewClimate Institute and Data-Driven EnviroLab, the first systematic analyses of global net zero commitments across countries, sub-national governments and major companies. 
We reference the UNFCCC's Race to Zero 'starting line' criteria in this analysis. It can be explored in detail <a href="https://racetozero.unfccc.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Race-to-Zero-EPRG-Criteria-Interpretation-Guide-2.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>.
Explore the Net Zero Tracker <a href="$PRIMARY_SITE_URL/pages/methodology">methodology</a> to find out about how we collected data. To access the data set, please download from our home page or <a href="mailto:hello@zerotracker.net" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">email us</a>. If using for external purposes, please cite as follows: For media: G20: Net Zero Stocktake, Net Zero Tracker. Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, Data-Driven EnviroLab, NewClimate Institute, Oxford Net Zero. October, 2021.
For academic publications: Thomas Hale, Takeshi Kuramochi, John Lang, Brendan Mapes, Steve Smith, Ria Aiyer, Richard Black, Mirte Boot, Peter Chalkley, Frederic Hans, Nick Hay, Angel Hsu, Niklas Höhne, Silke Mooldijk, Tristram Walsh. 'G20: Net Zero Stocktake', Net Zero Tracker. Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, Data-Driven EnviroLab, NewClimate Institute, Oxford Net Zero. 2021. 
This analysis owes a debt of gratitude to the following volunteers:
<ul><li>Shiemaa Ahmed</li><li>Fatima Arif</li><li>Nina Bengtsson</li><li>Barasha Borthakur</li><li>Samuel Boyer</li><li>Annabel Chantry</li><li>Mia Clement</li><li>Judith Condor-Vidal</li><li>Matthew Doran</li><li>Adriana Elera</li><li>Julian Gonzales</li><li>Manu Gupta</li><li>Jonathan Heale</li><li>Joe Kearney</li><li>Kara Keenan-Wilson</li><li>Maria Lemos Gonzalez</li><li>Amy Leung</li><li>Harry Linehan-Hill</li><li>Lucy Lyons</li><li>Lucy Main</li><li>Esmé McMillan</li><li>Nadia Merghani</li><li>Michelle Midzi</li><li>Sasha Mills</li><li>Joy Nkosi</li><li>Pippa Noble</li><li>Lizeth Palencia</li><li>Aiminayanate Pepple</li><li>Carol Serban</li><li>Bridget Stuart</li><li>Elizabeth Tatham</li><li>Leah Tillmann-Morris</li><li>Maria Torres Santeli Jose</li><li>Allan Torres</li><li>Irene Trung</li><li>Michelle Viotti</li><li>Kun Yan</li><li>Lina Yassin</li></ul>

The Net Zero Tracker's maiden analysis shines a light on G20 entities.

G20: Net Zero Stocktake

<title>Analysis | Net Zero Tracker</title>

Our latest on net zero targets across nations, regions, cities and public companies.

Analysis

Net Zero Stocktake 2022

Net Zero Tracker Partners