Setting your Carbon Reduction Plan to comply with PPN 06/21

Are you bidding on public contracts in the UK worth £5 million or more?  If so, have you measured your carbon footprint and set a Net Zero target for 2050?

On June 21st, 2021 the UK government published an important Public Procurement Notice (PPN) stating that, by September 30th, 2021 every entity bidding on UK public contracts worth £5 million or more will be required to measure their carbon footprint and have a Net Zero target for 2050 in place. This is so the UK government can assess if the bidder has taken steps to understand their environmental impact and carbon footprint relevant to the delivery of the contract. Failing to comply with this legislation means you will be excluded from the bidding process.

What is the UK government asking from you?

The UK government wants to determine if you have included sustainability as part of your common business operations. It therefore asks you to, at least annually, submit a Carbon Reduction Plan that: details your base year and current carbon footprint and, confirms your commitment to reducing carbon emissions to achieve Net Zero by 2050.

In order to determine your emissions and set a net zero target to comply with PPN 06/21 you first need to determine the carbon emissions for your base year by measuring the applicable direct and indirect emissions for all your UK operations. Carbon emissions are measured in three scopes.

• Scope 1: Direct Emissions from owned or controlled sources
• Scope 2: Indirect Emissions from the generation of purchased energy
• Scope 3: Indirect Emissions (not included in scope 2) that occur in the value chain.

The next step would be to measure the carbon footprint of your operations for the current year, taking into account any changes that have occurred in your company structure and operations.

The third step would involve setting a target that reaches Net Zero in 2050 to determine the progress you make towards that target each year. Targets can be set absolute or based on an intensity metric, for instance, often FTE or revenue.

The fourth and final step is to detail your past, current or intended carbon reduction projects and how these projects achieve carbon reductions against your base year.

How Ecometrica can assist

We offer Software as a Solution that can assist bidding entities meet this new requirement. Our platform can help determine your organisation’s carbon footprint in line with the GHG protocol methodology and easily submit your activity data in accordance with the required Carbon Reduction Plan. Our Sustainability Platform calculates the emissions associated with your activities making use of the most up to date and regional correct factors available. These results can then be used to set a Net Zero target according to an appropriate methodology such as those set out by the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi).

To find out more about how we can help with this and other ESG (environmental, social and governance) reporting challenges get in touch.