Planet Tracker Highlights Transparency Concerns in Toray Industries’ Sustainability Practices

London 10 January 2024 – Independent financial think tank, Planet Tracker, has raised concerns about Toray Industries’ climate transition plans, questioning the company’s climate transition pathway of Paris-aligned by 2031 and net zero by 2050.

Planet Tracker’s recent analysis of Toray Industries’ challenges the company’s climate alignment, asserting that it is on a trajectory aligned with +3°C. According to the analysis, Toray’s total emissions were 12,703 ktCO₂e in 2022, with nearly 60% stemming from Scope 3. While Toray emphasises its intention to reduce absolute emissions by 50% per unit of revenue by 2031, Planet Tracker contends that the company is not on track to achieve its 2031 or 2050 targets.

Planet Tracker questions the transparency of Toray’s reporting, specifically pointing out the lack of disclosure of downstream Scope 3 emissions, such as ‘use of sold products’.

Planet Tracker also expresses concerns about Toray’s governance practices, particularly in executive compensation. The analysis states that only 15% of the CEO’s total remuneration is linked to short-term goals, including environmental initiatives.

Furthermore, Planet Tracker questions the effectiveness of Toray’s supplier assessment process, describing it as less rigorous. Toray’s strategy of ‘retain and engage’ with underperformers is seen as a potential governance risk.

Finally, Planet Tracker’s analysis points out the lack of concrete details from Toray on how it intends to achieve its 2031 targets. The analysis also questions the feasibility of Toray’s aspiration to become carbon neutral for Scope 1 & 2 by 2050, stating that the technical risk is high for both 2031 and 2050.

While Toray emphasizes investments in “growth business fields” as part of its strategy, Planet Tracker concludes that the company does not have a robust plan to reach net zero for Scope 1 & 2 by 2050, and it identifies a notable absence of a Scope 3 strategy.

This report is one of a series examining the climate transition plans of companies in the Climate Action 100+ list. This project is separate from, and not affiliated with, Climate Action 100+.

Read the Full Report here

ENDS 

For more information please contact:

Dominic Lyle, Planet Tracker| t: +44 7484 654941 | dominic@planet-tracker.org

ABOUT PLANET TRACKER

Planet Tracker is a non-profit financial think tank producing analytics and reports to align capital markets with planetary boundaries. Our mission is to create significant and irreversible transformation of global financial activities by 2030. By informing, enabling and mobilising the transformative power of capital markets we aim to deliver a financial system that is fully aligned with a net-zero, nature-positive economy. Planet Tracker proactively engages with financial institutions to drive change in their investment strategies. We ensure they know exactly what risk is built into their investments and identify opportunities from funding the systems transformations we advocate.

PLANET TRACKER’S CLIMATE TRANSITION ANALYSIS – CHEMICAL COMPANIES

As part of its material system transition programme, Planet Tracker is examining the transition plans of the chemical companies covered by the Climate Action 100+ list   (https://www.climateaction100.org/whos-involved/companies/). Our goal is to provide investors with the key information and analysis they need to be able to hold chemical companies to account for the quality of their climate transition plans and their execution against those plans, and to encourage them to use this information to engage effectively with these companies with the ultimate aim of driving the sustainable transformation of the chemical sector.