Breakthrough Energy and CDP partner to fast track investment in new sustainable solutions

Breakthrough Energy, the Bill Gates-founded network of investment vehicles, philanthropic programs, and policy advocacy activities dedicated to helping the world reach net-zero emissions, and CDP, the global non-profit that pioneered and operates the only global environmental disclosure platform, today announced a partnership to develop the Catalyzed Emissions Reduction Framework to spur large scale investments in the new climate solutions that will accelerate achieving a zero-carbon economy.

The Catalyzed Emissions Reduction Framework will help the world to quantify the climate value of investments that develop technologies critical to a net zero future. It will allow the individuals, companies, and governments who want to finance a clean energy future to assess their climate impact and receive recognition for investing in activities that will eliminate sources of emissions permanently and over the long term.

Over the last several years, many companies and governments have committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. Aligning the private sector around this shared goal will be necessary if we are to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. But while ambitious goals and targets are critical, they are only the key first step – the world must also establish credible and detailed plans to achieve them. While some solutions are available to eliminate greenhouse gases from the processes that make up the foundations of our modern economy, too many are too expensive. As goals are set to eliminate emissions, those taking the step to invest early in helping those solutions reach scale should be recognized for their foresight.

In order to achieve net zero goals, companies need to invest in innovation and catalyze development of key climate technologies that can replace fossil fuel-based products on an accelerated basis. Many promising clean technologies such as sustainable aviation fuel or green hydrogen are still in the early stages of development and deployment. And because they remain expensive, they do not receive the early and strategic-level investment needed to lower their costs. The Catalyzed Emissions Reduction Framework will seek to drive investment to fill this funding gap by highlighting the emissions reductions benefits that can be achieved from investing early to help critical green technologies get down a cost curve that will make them competitive enough to scale around the world.

Jonah Goldman, Managing Director of Breakthrough Energy, explains:

“The only way we will avoid the worst impacts of climate change is if we commercialize new technologies that carry a high “Green Premium” over their fossil fuel-based counterparts. We should be recognizing those with the courage to help make that happen. While it is great that so many climate smart technologies – from the infrastructure for EVs to the development of wind and solar – are profitable investments today, we should be recognizing investors who are taking more risk to develop the other technologies that are not yet as easy to finance. The Catalyzed Emissions Reduction Framework will create a structure for recognizing that courage. We’re grateful for CDP’s partnership – their credibility and expertise are second-to-none and we’re thrilled to bring this work to the world.”

Nicolette Bartlett, Executive Director at CDP, explains why the Framework partnership is critical:

“CDP’s model of disclosure, insight, and action drives the acceleration of solutions, and we have seen through our involvement with the SBTi and other partnerships, that companies that have set ambitious targets can struggle to meet them. This is often because of an absence of options for action including technology solutions. The project with Breakthrough Energy is intended to close the gap in available options for action in a timeframe consistent with the goals being set by companies and BE aims to accelerate the availability and application of key technologies that will help businesses to fully decarbonize.

“The Framework will help quantify how a company’s investments contribute to accelerating the deployment of that technology to scale and help leaders explain to their investors and customers what they are doing to decarbonize their value chains. Ultimately we want to enable robust solutions that allow companies to buy into directly solving the problem.”

Any entity investing in or procuring emerging climate technologies – including through grants, equity, loans, guarantees, or offtake agreements – will be able to use the Framework. Throughout the course of the project, CDP and Breakthrough Energy will engage with multiple stakeholders, including NGOs, governments, companies and others to ensure the Framework is synergistic and rigorous.

Next steps
CDP and Breakthrough Energy are inviting companies who are involved in any value chain stage of emerging technologies to express their interest in contributing to the testing and refining of the framework: https://www.cdp.net/catalyzed-emissions-reduction-framework

CDP will publish a report in Fall 2021 to explain the Catalyzed Emissions Reduction Framework methodology and provide detailed guidance around how it will align with existing rules for greenhouse gas reporting and Science Based Targets Initiative Net Zero Standard. By COP26, CDP will have a mechanism for companies to commit to integrating the Framework into their existing decarbonization strategies.

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About Breakthrough Energy
Founded by Bill Gates, Breakthrough Energy is dedicated to helping humanity avoid a climate disaster. Through investment vehicles, philanthropic programs, policy advocacy, and other activities, we’re committed to scaling the technologies we need to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. For more information about Breakthrough Energy visit breakthroughenergy.org.

About CDP

CDP is a global non-profit that runs the world’s environmental disclosure system for companies, cities, states and regions. Founded in 2000 and working with more than 590 investors with over $110 trillion in assets, CDP pioneered using capital markets and corporate procurement to motivate companies to disclose their environmental impacts, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, safeguard water resources and protect forests. Over 10,000 organizations around the world disclosed data through CDP in 2020, including more than 9,600 companies who together represent over 50% of global market capitalization, and over 940 cities, states and regions, representing a combined population of over 2.6 billion. Fully TCFD aligned, CDP holds the largest environmental database in the world, and CDP scores are widely used to drive investment and procurement decisions towards a zero carbon, sustainable and resilient economy. CDP is a founding member and Secretariat of the Science Based Targets initiative, We Mean Business Coalition, The Investor Agenda and the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative. Visit cdp.net