Climate Policy Engagement Analysis
Climate Lobbying Overview: Accenture appears to be engaging with mostly positive positions on climate change policy in the EU and U.S. However, the company has supported a continued role for fossil fuels, including oil and gas, in the coming decades. The company is also a member of several industry associations that engage negatively on climate policy, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Accenture demonstrates positive top-line messaging on climate policy. In November 2022, Accenture CEO Julie Sweet signed a joint letter from the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, which called on national governments to raise ambitions and enact policy changes to limit global warming to 1.5°C. Accenture appears to support the need for climate change regulation. The company supported market-based mechanisms with a clear reference to the need for ambition in a November 2022 joint letter, and appeared to support the proposed investments under the Bipartisan Infrastructure and Investment Act to aid the energy transition in a January 2022 blog post. Accenture signed a joint letter in November 2022, calling for more ambitious NDCs in the build up to COP27.
Engagement with Climate-Related Policy: Accenture seems largely supportive of climate policies, albeit with limited engagement from 2022-2023. In a July 2022 blog post, Accenture broadly supported carbon border adjustment mechanisms. The company broadly supported energy efficiency incentives in a November 2022 joint letter, as well as investments to make agricultural production more resource efficient. Accenture also appeared to communicate support for the Renewable Fuel Standard in the U.S. and Europe’s Refuel EU Aviation initiative in a November 2022 blog post.
Positioning on Energy Transition: Accenture appears to adopt positions on the energy transition that are partially misaligned with the Paris Agreement goals. In a November 2022 joint letter signed by CEO Julie Sweet, Accenture advocated for national governments to remove fossil fuel subsidies and to implement regulatory measures to assist the transition to low-carbon technologies. Similarly, in an October 2022 corporate report, Accenture appeared to state support for proposed investments under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act to stimulate industrial decarbonization in the U.S.
However, the evidence suggests that Accenture also continues to support a prolonged role for fossil fuels in the energy mix. In a September 2022 corporate report, Accenture appeared to emphasize the threat of energy insecurity to suggest that oil and fossil gas must play a part in the energy mix for the “foreseeable future”. While the company also communicated support for renewable power, hydrogen, biofuels and carbon capture, utilization and storage in the same report, its position on the role of these technologies with regard to a full transition towards a zero-emissions energy system is unclear. In a June 2022 corporate report, Accenture also appeared to emphasize] concerns around the economic and technical feasibility of a move away from fossil fuels, including fossil gas and oil, in the energy mix.
Industry Association Governance: Accenture discloses a list of its U.S. industry associations on its corporate website, with no further details regarding the positions of the groups on climate policy, how the company influences the groups, nor its alignment with their policy positions. A senior executive of Accenture is on the board of the National Association of Manufacturers, which is engaging negatively with climate policy in the U.S.