Corporate net-zero commitments have grown rapidly by 2025, but most companies still lag in real action, especially on Scope 3 emissions and accountability. The gap between climate promises and measurable progress continues to raise concerns about credibility and greenwashing.
However, in December 2015, the Paris Climate Change Agreement marked the beginning of the formal process of limiting global temperature to 1.5°C above the pre-industrial level. With ten years passed since then, it became evident that corporations’ commitments are made faster than ever. As SBTi states, at the middle of 2025, the number of firms committed to near-term or net-zero climate targets has exceeded 10,949, which compares to the 4,200 figure in 2023. Approximately 30% of listed companies around the world have announced net-zero goals – six times higher than in 2020. Nonetheless, there are some important facts behind these numbers.
According to the 2024 Accenture report analyzing the operations of the largest 2,000 enterprises across the globe, one out of six of them is on the right path to achieving its net-zero emissions goal by 2050. About 45% of the analyzed businesses to continue increasing their carbon emissions since the adoption of the Paris Climate Change Agreement. However, as full net-zero target setting has reached 37%, more than half of companies have reduced carbon emissions and their intensity in the same period.
Pledges Without Plans
The main challenge in terms of climate accountability within corporations is related to what companies say compared to their actions. According to the findings of the yearly Net Zero Tracker provided by the Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit of the University of Oxford, 96% of corporate net-zero targets do not meet the requirements outlined in the United Nations’ Race to Zero campaign. In particular, the Race to Zero requires a comprehensive consideration of all emissions in all scopes and actions towards reducing emissions starting immediately.
Scope 3 emissions, which include emissions generated throughout corporations’ supply chains and the consumption of their products, constitute the largest part of corporate carbon footprints, accounting for more than 70% of total emissions. However, according to the same report, only 37% of corporate targets account for scope 3 emissions in their strategies. By excluding their supply chain from net-zero commitments, corporations ignore the majority of their emissions.
Who Is Actually Delivering
Among the leaders whose climate plans have been publicly announced, Microsoft aims to go carbon-negative by 2030 and become net-zero by removing all historical emissions by 2050. On its part, Apple has reduced its emissions by 60% compared to 2015 and brought 650 MWs of renewable energy generation capacity into service in Europe. In 2024, H&M Group managed to cover 96% of its electricity consumption with renewable energy. In addition, Unilever is going to achieve the company’s net-zero state throughout its value chain by 2039. Such ambitions are well-grounded as companies invest substantial amounts of capital in their implementation and monitor their results.
On the contrary, oil and gas producers have shifted away from climate goals. As an example, BP gave up on cutting its output by 40% in 2030 and increased output targets instead. Shell estimates its fossil fuel output to grow by 1% every year until 2030. Such decisions have been explained by economic circumstances and growing pressure from shareholders. These decisions faced significant backlash from both climate experts and institutional investors who pointed out the contradiction between increasing fossil fuel investments and Paris-aligned strategies.
The Regulatory Shift
Voluntary corporate actions are increasingly being supplemented by legal requirements. For example, the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive will be fully phased in until 2025 and will require compulsory reporting on carbon emissions for approximately 50,000 entities, accounting for 75% of EU company revenues. Additionally, it will cover more than 3,000 non-EU firms, including over 3,000 American companies. Similar legislation has been introduced in California, affecting around 10,000 companies.
Support from financial markets has also been forthcoming. Over 65 financial institutions managing more than $130 trillion in assets have committed themselves to becoming net zero through the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero initiative. Investments in climate tech venture funds totalled $70 billion in 2024, with the greatest increase seen in hard-to-abate industries such as steel, cement, and aviation production. Investment moves ahead even when corporations do not move quickly enough.
What Accountability Requires
It’s not about the absence of pledges; it’s rather about the insufficient level of standardization and verifiability. For example, even though the climate pledges target 56% of corporate emissions for 2021, only 32% of these corporations can provide any data on how their capital allocation is aimed at addressing climate issues. The phenomenon of greenwashing remains relevant for both customers and shareholders, as corporations continue to use marketing language to exaggerate environmental performance. Already, regulators from the EU, the UK, and Australia have issued fines for greenwashing practices.
The way climate pledges become effective change-makers depends on meeting three conditions: coverage, verification, and capital allocation plans. To be more specific, a corporate pledge should cover Scope 3, should be verified annually, and include capital allocation plans. Currently, none of the existing pledges meet these conditions.
References
Accenture. (2024). Destination Net Zero: Annual analysis of net-zero commitments and carbon reduction activities for the world’s 2,000 largest companies. https://newsroom.accenture.com/news/2024/only-16-of-largest-companies-on-track-for-net-zero-goals-with-nearly-half-seeing-increased-emissions-accenture-analysis-finds
DevelopmentAid. (2025). Corporate climate scorecard 2025: Which major companies failed on climate action? DevelopmentAid News. https://www.developmentaid.org/news-stream/post/202896/which-major-companies-failed-on-climate-action-in-2025
Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit. (2023). New analysis: Half of world’s largest companies are committed to net zero. Net Zero Tracker. https://zerotracker.net/analysis/new-analysis-half-of-worlds-largest-companies-are-committed-to-net-zero
NewClimate Institute. (2024). Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor 2024: Transparency and integrity assessment. NewClimate Institute. https://newclimate.org/news/press-release-corporate-climate-responsibility-monitor-2024
Science-Based Targets Initiative. (2025). Corporate climate target-setting up 40% in 2025. SBTi News. https://sciencebasedtargets.org/news
Rocky Mountain Institute. (2024). Corporate climate action: Analyzing the recent surge of climate commitments. RMI. https://rmi.org/corporate-climate-action-analyzing-the-recent-surge-of-climate-commitments/
Clear Cut Climate, CSR Desk
New Delhi, UPDATED: April 17, 2026 01:00 IST
Written By: Tanmay J Urs
