British energy company Shell employees walk through Shell's largest solar park in Europe hosting more than 128,000 solar panels in a polder near Terneuzen, southern Netherlands on Oct. 24.Europe has ushered in a new era of sustainability reporting for companies, imposing new requirements to provide details about theirLast week, the European Union formalized standards that take disclosure beyond climate- and sustainability-related risks affecting corporate prospects.
Beyond that, some Canadian companies are starting to gather data, establish reporting systems and understand legal risks on the assumption that a version of the EU rules could also be adopted in other jurisdictions down the road, said Roopa Davé, partner, ESG and climate services, at KPMG. It is not clear if Canadian regulators will force companies and financial institutions to adopt the EU-style requirements. After an early attempt to set rules for climate-related disclosure stalled, securities commissions are now focused on the the international standards, which start to come into effect next year, said Stan Magidson, chief executive officer of the Alberta Securities Commission and chair of Canadian Securities Administrators.