Under SECR Rules is Carbon Emissions Reporting (SECR) Relevant to Me?
- jonnyjetsetter
- Apr 3
- 2 min read
In the UK, companies required to report under the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) framework, including large unquoted companies, LLPs, and quoted companies, must report their Scope 1 and 2 emissions, while Scope 3 emissions are voluntary but strongly encouraged.
Who is required to report under SECR?
Large unquoted companies: (meeting specific criteria, like turnover, balance sheet total, or number of employees)
Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs): that meet the definition of "large"
Companies listed on a stock exchange (quoted companies)
Reporting Scope 3 emissions refers to disclosing the indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that occur in a company's value chain but are not directly controlled or owned by the company. Scope 3 emissions are part of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, which defines three scopes of emissions for organisations to measure and report:
Scope 1: Direct emissions from owned or controlled sources (e.g., company-owned vehicles, facilities).
Scope 2: Indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity consumed by the reporting company.
Scope 3: Indirect emissions not included in Scope 2 that occur in the value chain, both upstream and downstream of the company’s operations.
Scope 3 emissions can be broken down into 15 distinct categories, ranging from the emissions generated by the extraction of raw materials (upstream) to emissions from product use and disposal (downstream). Some common examples of Scope 3 emissions include:
Purchased goods and services (e.g., emissions associated with the production of raw materials, components, or services the company buys).
Business travel (e.g., emissions from flights, trains, or other modes of transportation for work-related travel).
Employee commuting (e.g., emissions from employees traveling to and from work).
Waste disposal (e.g., emissions from managing waste the company generates).
Use of sold products (e.g., emissions that result from the consumption of products sold, like cars or electronics).
End-of-life treatment of sold products (e.g., emissions from the disposal or recycling of products once they’ve reached the end of their useful life).
Why is reporting Scope 3 important?
Comprehensive climate strategy: Scope 3 emissions often make up the largest portion of a company’s total GHG emissions, so measuring and managing them is critical to achieving substantial reductions in overall emissions.
Easy Ways to Immediately Cut Your Carbon Emissions:
1) Installation of LED giving an instant hit and in a commercial setting often offers a payback in 2-3 years. 2) Installation of solar panels with batteries. Although usually offering a longer payback period than LED lighting, the reduction is carbon emissions can be substantial and companies can very often claim accelerated capital allowances. (For more information see: Tax Implications for Commercial Solar)
3) If you do not wish to commit to CapEx alternatively you can install both LED lighting with solar panels and batteries via Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). (For further information see Nutshell: What is a Power Purchase Agreement?)
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