ESRS E1 Climate Change Disclosures
Overview
Draft and validate the ESRS E1 (Climate Change) topical pack of a CSRD sustainability statement: ESRS 2 SBM-3 and ESRS 2 IRO-1 applied at E1 topic level (climate-related scenario analysis), E1-1 transition plan, E1-2 policies, E1-3 actions and resources, E1-4 targets, E1-5 energy consumption and mix, E1-6 gross Scope 1 / 2 / 3 GHG emissions per the GHG Protocol, E1-7 removals and carbon credits, E1-8 internal carbon pricing, and E1-9 anticipated financial effects.
Anchored to Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772 (ESRS E1), the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard with the Scope 2 Guidance and Scope 3 Standard, the EU Climate Law, the EU Taxonomy Climate Delegated Act, the EU ETS, CBAM, RED III, EED recast, the EU Carbon Removals Certification Framework, the SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard, IPCC AR6 GWP-100, and EFRAG IG-3. Interoperable with IFRS S2 (ISSB) and TCFD.
The skill consumes the DMA IRO register and material-topics decisions, hands disclosure-requirement rows back to ESRS 2 IRO-2, and cross-references the EU Taxonomy alignment report for Article 8 KPI computation.
What It Covers
- ESRS 2 SBM-3 (E1 application) — material climate IROs classified as transition (policy-and-legal, technology, market, reputation), physical (chronic / acute), or opportunity; located in the value chain; mapped to short / medium / long horizons (≤1y / 1–5y / >5y per ESRS 1 §§33–34).
- ESRS 2 IRO-1 (E1 application) — climate-related scenario analysis with at least one high-emissions and at least one 1.5°C-aligned scenario (NGFS Phase V, IEA WEO, IPCC AR6 SSP variants), provider and vintage stated.
- E1-1 Transition plan — 1.5°C-aligned trajectory, decarbonisation levers, locked-in emissions for key assets, CapEx alignment with the EU Taxonomy climate-mitigation and climate-adaptation activities, plan coherence with financial statements and remuneration.
- E1-4 Targets — base year, target year, milestones, scopes and gases covered, SBTi validation status, explicit non-substitution statement on credits and removals.
- E1-6 GHG inventory — Scope 1 by gas with EU ETS coverage flagged; Scope 2 location-based and market-based (REC / GoO / PPA instruments); 15-category Scope 3 screening with material categories quantified; biogenic CO₂ separated; total GHG and intensity per net revenue; organisational boundary reconciled to the financial statements; recalculation policy; IPCC AR6 GWP-100 with explicit values (CH₄ fossil 29.8, N₂O 273).
- E1-7 / E1-8 / E1-9 — removals and carbon credits with quality, vintage, and standard (Verra VCS, Gold Standard, Article 6.4, EU CRCF — with delegated-acts-pending caveat); internal carbon pricing scheme; anticipated financial effects by horizon, reconciled to financial-statement carrying amounts.
Example Conversation
You: We are a wave-2 CSRD reporter — an EU industrial manufacturing group operating in a high-climate-impact sector under §AR3. Our DMA confirmed climate change material across mitigation, adaptation, and energy sub-topics. We have an SBTi-validated near-term target (Scope 1+2 location-based and Scope 3 categories 1 and 11) and a 2050 net-zero commitment. Draft the full ESRS E1 pack and run the validator.
Agent: I’ll first reconcile inputs from
program/(entity profile, IRO register, value-chain map, DMA decision-log, GHG inventory workbook, organisational-boundary memo, scenario-analysis methodology note) and confirm we’re in a §AR3 high-climate-impact sector. Then I’ll draft each section in turn: ESRS 2 SBM-3 (E1 application) → ESRS 2 IRO-1 climate scenario analysis → E1-1 transition plan → E1-2..E1-9. Where you have not provided a fact, I’ll use[PENDING: owner/source]so the assurance evidence chain stays traceable.
Agent: Drafted
e1/sbm-3.md,e1/iro-1-scenario-analysis.md,e1/e1-1-transition-plan.md,e1/e1-4-targets.csv,e1/e1-6-ghg-inventory.md, and four more files. Runningvalidate_esrs_e1_climate_changewithoutputType=full_pack…
Agent: Result: INCOMPLETE (24 of 27 checks passed). Three gaps:
- GWP source — IPCC AR6 preferred for 2024+ reporting: the inventory cites AR5. AR6 GWP-100 should be used (CH₄ fossil 29.8, N₂O 273); state the AR5/AR6 discrepancy if you keep the prior basis for comparability.
- Scenario provider and vintage / phase stated: the IRO-1 section names “NGFS” without a phase. NGFS Phase V (Nov 2024) is current — please add.
- Sibling-scope check: EU Taxonomy KPI computation: E1-1 contains alignment-percentage tables. Move those to the EU Taxonomy alignment report; here, just narrate the CapEx plan and cross-reference.
You: Switch to AR6, add “NGFS Phase V (November 2024)” to the scenario section, and move the alignment table to
eu-taxonomy/alignment-kpis.csv.
Agent: Updated. Re-running validator. Result: PASS (27 / 27). Pack is ready for management review and ISAE 3000 evidence packaging.
Sample Output Excerpt
E1-6 GHG inventory section produced by the skill, with the organisational boundary and recalculation policy stated and a 15-category Scope 3 screen.
# E1-6 Gross Scope 1, Scope 2, Scope 3 and total GHG emissions
Materiality scope statement: climate change is material across mitigation,
adaptation, and energy per the DMA decision-log (program/material-topics.md
row CLIM-2026-01). High-climate-impact sector under ESRS E1 §AR3 (Annex I,
Appendix B): heavy industry — basic metals manufacturing.
Source-of-truth reconciliation note: files read include
program/iro-register.csv, program/baselines.md,
program/evidence-index.md, the GHG inventory workbook
(EVID-GHG-2025-WB-001), and the operational-control boundary memo
(EVID-GHG-2025-BND-002).
## Organisational boundary
Operational control per GHG Protocol Corporate Standard Ch. 3.
Reconciliation to financial statements: the operational-control perimeter
covers all subsidiaries consolidated by the parent under IFRS 10, plus the
50 % JV "NorthSteel BV" (excluded under equity method in the financial
statements but included for GHG because we operate the site). Differences
documented in EVID-GHG-2025-BND-002.
## GWP source
IPCC AR6 GWP-100 (CH₄ fossil 29.8, N₂O 273). Switched from AR5 in FY2025;
AR5 / AR6 reconciliation table in evidence index entry GHG-AR-RECON.
## Scope 1 (by gas, 2025)
| Gas | tCO₂e | Coverage |
|---|---:|---|
| CO₂ (combustion + process) | 412,800 | EU ETS (Phase IV) |
| CH₄ | 1,640 | EU ETS for combustion sources |
| N₂O | 920 | EU ETS for nitric-acid plant |
| HFC / SF₆ / NF₃ | [PENDING: refrigeration owner] | not in EU ETS |
| **Total Scope 1** | **415,360** | |
Biogenic CO₂ (out-of-scope of inventory total): 18,200 tCO₂e — disclosed
separately per ESRS E1 §AR41.
## Scope 2 (2025)
| Basis | tCO₂e |
|---|---:|
| Location-based | 96,400 |
| Market-based | 71,800 |
Market-based instruments: 240 GWh of GoOs retired (Norwegian hydro,
2025 vintage, AIB-EECS); 180 GWh PPA with onshore wind (Spain) — quality
criteria per GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance §7 met; retirement evidence in
EVID-EAC-2025.
## Scope 3 — 15-category screen
| # | Category | Material | tCO₂e |
|---:|---|:---:|---:|
| 1 | Purchased goods and services | Yes | 1,840,000 |
| 2 | Capital goods | Yes | 78,000 |
| 3 | Fuel- and energy-related | Yes | 22,400 |
| 4 | Upstream T&D | Yes | 64,200 |
| 5 | Waste | No (immaterial — quantified screen 1.4 ktCO₂e) | — |
| … | … | … | … |
| 11 | Use of sold products | Yes | 2,640,000 |
| 12 | End-of-life of sold products | Yes | 41,800 |
| 15 | Investments | No (no material equity / debt portfolio) | — |
| **Total Scope 3 (material)** | | | **4,686,400** |
Total GHG (location-based): 5,197,160 tCO₂e.
Total GHG (market-based): 5,172,560 tCO₂e.
Intensity per net revenue: 1.42 tCO₂e / k€ (FY2025 net revenue €3,650m).
## Recalculation policy
Trigger thresholds per GHG Protocol §5: structural changes, methodology
changes, or significant errors causing a >5 % shift in base-year emissions.
No recalculation triggered in FY2025. Base year remains FY2022 per
EVID-BASEYEAR-2022.
## Verification
Limited assurance under ISAE 3410 by [PENDING: assurance provider] —
opinion expected Q2 2026; statement to be added to EVID-VER-2025.
What the Validator Checks
validate_esrs_e1_climate_change infers the output type (full pack, non-materiality statement, or any of the eleven sub-deliverables) from headings and runs the relevant checks against the regulatory baseline:
- Regulatory anchors — every artefact must cite Delegated Reg (EU) 2023/2772, the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard, the EU Climate Law, the EU Taxonomy Climate Delegated Act, the EU ETS, CBAM, RED III, EED recast, the EU CRCF, the SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard, IPCC AR6 GWP-100, and EFRAG IG-3, scoped to the section in scope.
- GWP source — warns when AR5 is cited without AR6 and prints the AR6 GWP-100 values for CH₄ (fossil 29.8) and N₂O (273).
- GHG inventory completeness — Scope 2 location-based and market-based; biogenic CO₂ separated; 15-category Scope 3 materiality screening; recalculation policy disclosed; organisational boundary stated and reconciled to the financial statements; intensity per net revenue.
- Targets and credits — explicit non-substitution statement on credits and removals; SBTi validation status; legacy CDM (Article 6.4) vs new mechanism distinction; CRCF Article 8 delegated-acts-pending caveat.
- Scenario analysis — at least one high-emissions and one 1.5°C-aligned scenario, both physical and transition risks, scenario provider and vintage / phase named (NGFS Phase V, IEA WEO, IPCC AR).
- Time horizons — ESRS 1 §§33–34 boundaries (≤1y / 1–5y / >5y) stated where horizons are referenced.
- IRO and policy register — alphanumeric IRO IDs accepted (EFRAG IG-3 IRO-T-01 / IRO-P-03 format); MDR-P / MDR-A / MDR-T datapoints applied.
- Internal carbon pricing — currency tagged (EUR / USD / GBP / SEK / NOK / DKK / CHF / PLN / CZK / HUF / RON), scope coverage stated.
- Sibling-scope leakage — flags drift into E2–E5, S1–S4, G1, or EU Taxonomy KPI computation, with allow-patterns for legitimate cross-references.
- Workspace path safety — refuses absolute paths, parent traversal, and symlink escapes (rejects access outside the project workspace).
Output: RESULT: PASS when every check passes, otherwise RESULT: INCOMPLETE with a per-check status table and an explicit missing[] array. Iterate until the pack passes before handing off to assurance.
Getting Started
Install the CSRD / ESRS Sustainability Reporting Program workspace template — it auto-installs the Double Materiality Assessment, ESRS 2 General Disclosures, and this ESRS E1 Climate Change Disclosures skill into the same project. Populate the shared program/ assets first (entity profile, value-chain map, IRO register, evidence index, datapoint index, baselines), then ask the agent to draft the E1 pack section by section. The validator runs against any single sub-deliverable or the full pack — iterate until it passes, then forward the pack to the CSRD Assurance Readiness and EU Taxonomy Alignment Report skills.