CDP again awards BASF Leadership status

The non-profit organization CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) has again ranked BASF as one of the world’s leading companies for its water management and forest and climate protection measures. BASF achieved the top rating A in the CDP assessment for sustainable water management and was rated A- in the other two categories.  

“I am proud that CDP has again recognized BASF as a global leader and particularly pleased that we have received an A rating in the water management category,” said Dr. Martin Brudermüller, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE. “Sustainability is at the top of our agenda despite the current tough environment and reducing our CO₂ emissions remains a key priority. We will not rest in our efforts to reach our sustainability targets.” 

BASF once again achieved an A- rating on CDP's climate list and thus leadership status. BASF has participated in CDP’s program for reporting on data relevant to climate protection since 2004. Among other things, the assessment considers the transparency of emissions reporting, the handling of risks and opportunities arising from climate change, the climate protection strategy and CO₂ reduction measures. BASF has set itself the goal of reducing its CO₂ emissions by 25 percent by 2030 compared with 2018 – while growing production volumes. This corresponds to a reduction of 60 percent based on 1990 as reference year, which is used, for example, by the European Union and Germany for their target setting. The company aims to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. At the heart of the long-term emissions reduction is the use of new technologies, which will replace fossil fuels such as natural gas with electricity from renewable sources. At the same time, BASF is working intensively to increasingly replace fossil raw materials with renewable and recycled raw materials. To achieve these goals, BASF has created powerful structures with the implementation of the Net Zero Accelerator unit.

Based on data reported through CDP’s 2022 Water Security questionnaire, BASF is one of 103 companies that achieved an ‘A’ – out of several thousand companies scored. BASF is introducing sustainable water management at all relevant production sites by 2030. This includes the major Verbund sites and sites in water stress areas. CDP’s assessment takes into account how transparently companies report on their water management activities and how they reduce risks such as water scarcity. CDP also evaluates the extent to which product developments can contribute to sustainable water management for customers of the companies assessed.

BASF was evaluated by CDP for the third time for its efforts to protect forests and was ranked A-, as in the previous years. BASF is aware of the importance of protecting forests for the well-being of the environment and society. Its position paper on forest protection sets out BASF’s commitment to preserving biodiversity in areas of High Conservation Value such as High Carbon Stock forest areas and peatlands in the procurement of renewable raw materials. The CDP assessment is conducted based on detailed insights into the palm value chain and activities that impact ecosystems and natural habitats.

CDP represents over 680 investors with over $130 trillion in assets and more than 280 major buyers with $6.4 trillion in purchasing power. CDP data is also used in other assessments by leading rating agencies. CDP scores are awarded annually on a scale from “A” (best result) to “D-.” Companies that provide no or only insufficient information are marked with “F.”