S'pore's large listed firms ‘making progress' in climate reporting

But more has to be done in connecting climate risks to firms’ bottom line: Study

- Sue-Ann Tan

Large listed companies in Singapore are making progress in their climate reporting, said a new study out on July 8.

Companies with a market capitalisation of more than $1 billion as at July 2023 did well in areas such as creating committees to deal with climate risks and opportunities, and disclosing the physical and transitional risks related to climate change.

But more needs to be done in connecting climate risks to the companies' bottom line, it added.

The study, conducted by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (Acra) and the Sustainable and Green Finance Institute at the National University of Singapore, covered 51 large listed companies and studied their climate-related disclosures for the 2022 financial year.

These disclosures were based on the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures framework.

Improving climate reporting is vital, especially as Singapore will introduce mandatory climate reporting in phases from the financial year 2025 for listed companies, aligned to the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) requirements. This will also be required of non-listed companies with an annual revenue of at least $1 billion and total assets of at least $500 million from the financial year 2027.

A separate report by EY, also out on July 8, revealed that 96 per cent of Singapore-listed have started climate-related reporting efforts, up from the 65 per cent that did so last year. It noted that more issuers are also disclosing climate-related risks and opportunities.