At the end of November 2023 it was brimming RWE-Boss Markus Krebber (51) is brimming with optimism. At the group’s Capital Markets Day in London, the trained banker announced his green master plan, which quite a few industry and corporate insiders consider to be quite risky
. According to this plan, the RWE boss wants to invest 55 billion euros in renewable energies by 2030, i.e. within just seven years. He then wants to have more than 65 gigawatts of green capacity; RWE currently only has 35 gigawatts. The coal company would then finally switch to green.
By 2040, RWE boss Krebber wants to reduce the CO₂ that the group releases into the atmosphere through its own activities and the greenhouse gas production attributable to customers and suppliers (the so-called Scope 3 emissions, which arise outside of its own narrow sphere of activity) to zero shut down.
With these climate goals, RWE is in the most ambitious segment of the DAX league. Only Porsche, SAP, Mercedes-Benz, the Deutsche Telekom and Merck want to be ready sooner or by 2040.
Overall, the efforts of the German corporate elite to slow down or even stop climate change are increasing. This is the conclusion reached by an extensive study by the Frankfurt fund company Union Investment, the results of which are available exclusively to manager magazin.
“29 out of 40 DAX companies have set themselves a complete climate target, including all Scope 1 to 3 emissions,” reports Henrik Pontzen (44), Chief Sustainability Officer at Union Investment. Last year, only half of all DAX companies had set themselves sufficient goals
. Contrary to the impression that companies are losing their climate targets in difficult economic times, the DAX companies have stepped up, says Pontzen. “There is less talk and more being done when it comes to climate protection.”
Board bonuses are important for climate protection
At the coal company RWE, this means that carbon dioxide emissions have been reduced by 50 percent within five years. With emissions of more than 62 million tons, the electricity giant remains the second largest dirt thrower in the DAX. For comparison: This year’s largest emitter (68 million tons), cement manufacturer Heidelberg Materials, was only able to reduce its emissions by 17 percent. With Adidas, Merck, German stock exchange, Sartorius and Eon, emissions have even increased at five DAX companies.
Study author and sustainability analyst Jakob Haerle (27) not only looked at the CO₂ reduction balance between 2018 and 2023, but also took an intensive look at the climate ambitions. He analyzes how noticeable it is in the salaries of top managers when they achieve or miss their emissions targets. There was also a bonus point for particularly efficient companies that were able to reduce their CO₂ intensity despite growth. Corporations with a Paris-compatible emissions forecast received a second bonus point.
The study uses both future-oriented and historical data and analyzes it using, among other things, artificial intelligence. From the data, the Union analysts finally built a meaningful ranking that classifies and evaluates the companies’ efforts.
RWE achieved full points in the ranking. “The course has been set, but it remains important to implement it, because companies like RWE have a lot of leverage,” says Haerle. RWE CEO Krebber himself has good, monetary reasons: exactly a third of his short-term bonuses are based on emissions and sustainability targets. The study shows that the incentive is a good indicator of a good overall result. In addition to RWE, six other companies (Telekom, Beiersdorf, Munich Re, Volkswagen, Fresenius and Covestro) received full points in the category. The other three companies (Deutsche Bank, Continental and Bavarian) at least two out of three points.
There is a lot of catching up to do at Brenntag, MTU Aero Engines and Co.
At the bottom of the table the opposite picture emerges. At the bottom Brenntag like at MTU Aero Engines, Vonovia, Adidas and the DHL Group Top managers hardly notice their (very expandable) climate efforts in their own pockets.
However, the three biggest climate offenders in the DAX (Brenntag, MTU Aero Engines and Vonovia) do not only need to catch up in terms of incentives. “These are all complicated business models,” says Haerle. “But even if you cannot realistically reduce Scope 3 emissions to zero, you should at least address them in your climate goals in 2024 and try to reduce them.”
A look at the top group shows that even companies with complicated business models can be climate-fit, says Haerle. “Covestro, Bayer, Beiersdorf and RWE not only impress with their ambitions, but also with their reduction.”
Infineon accelerates
Infineon has achieved a lot in a short time. Last year, the semiconductor manufacturer was at the bottom, and in this year’s ranking it has moved up 20 places to 19th place. The group has reduced its emissions by 45 percent – despite massive growth.
More on the topic
However, the semiconductor manufacturer is not yet climate fit (from 8.5 points in the ranking) – like two thirds of the leading German index. And the challenges will not get any smaller in the future; many companies will focus on Scope 3 emissions in the future. “The corporations only have limited access here, but they still have to look for solutions and set themselves goals,” demands Pontzen.