As corporate sustainability matures, so do the data requirements.
Historically, high-level goals and annual averages have been the standard for reporting. Because companies lacked primary data, professionals could use broad annual matching for their renewable energy needs in Scope 2 or use industry benchmarks to fill in the gaps for Scope 3.
However, the landscape is changing. Regulators and investors are increasingly moving away from “best-guess” estimates. Now, they are looking for granular, verifiable data that reflects the physical reality of a company’s footprint.
This article looks at how high-quality data is becoming the necessary foundation for navigating these three pillars of decarbonization:
- Scope 1: Moving toward credits that can withstand regulatory auditing.
- Scope 2: Transitioning from annual matching to real-time transparency.
- Scope 3: Replacing high-level assumptions with primary supplier data.
Keep reading to learn more about how the sustainability data gap is becoming a significant business risk—and how you can get ahead of compliance mandates.
Scope 1: Better data protects you from greenwashing
As companies move deeper into climate action, the tools they use to reach net zero are being re-examined.
Today, carbon credits are a popular way to offset Scope 1 emissions that are difficult to eliminate. However, the voluntary carbon market is undergoing a correction. Because credits exist outside of regulatory oversight, the market has struggled with:
- Inconsistent methodologies: Without a single standard, accounting for carbon removal can vary.
- Double-counting: A lack of centralized tracking means some reductions were claimed more than once.
- Impact gaps: Many investments look excellent on a spreadsheet but fail to create real-world climate benefits.
Regulators, investors, and consumers are all pushing companies to evaluate their carbon credit strategies. Increasingly, the focus is on securing credits that are considered high quality, which means they come from projects with robust, transparent, and verified data.
Now, “quality” is no longer a subjective term. Whether your company is buying credits or generating them, your credits must be able to withstand intense regulatory scrutiny. Clear data is what makes that possible.
Scope 2: Regulators increasingly need more granular data
In renewable energy procurement, the focus is shifting from volume to timing. For over a decade, the standard has been annual matching: buying enough renewable energy to cover total yearly usage. However, this approach ignores a fundamental physical reality: renewable supply is variable.
Solar peaks at midday; wind fluctuates by the hour. When a company relies on annual matching, it implicitly uses fossil-based electricity whenever renewable production is low. This creates a disconnect between accounting and actual carbon impact.
Regulators are now addressing this gap. Frameworks like CSRD and ESRS are pushing companies toward hourly matching. This granular approach offers several benefits:
- Accuracy: It reflects the physical reality of the power grid.
- Accountability: It exposes imbalances between consumption and production.
- Market signals: It rewards technologies that provide low-carbon power precisely when it is needed.
To succeed, an annual overview is no longer sufficient. Companies now need a 24/7 understanding of their operational energy use. High-quality, real-time data is the only way to turn these procurement strategies into actual decarbonization.
Scope 3: Complex value chains require data synthesis
As companies make progress on Scopes 1 and 2, they’re turning towards Scope 3.
Scope 3 is notoriously difficult because it encompasses 15 different categories across the entire value chain. The core issue is that these emission sources sit outside of a company’s direct control. This creates a significant data gap that defines the current struggle for many professionals:
- Without direct data, companies often rely on industry averages or high-level assumptions.
- Tracking 15 different categories—each with its own GHG Protocol requirements—is a massive administrative burden.
- Gathering data from suppliers and turning it into a cohesive report is slow and prone to error.
In this new phase of climate action, manual spreadsheets are a liability. To get clearer data across the value chain, companies are changing their approach by partnering with specialists and deploying digital tools that help automate the collection of primary data from suppliers.
Clean data is the new baseline for corporate sustainability
The shift toward radical transparency across Scopes 1, 2, and 3 represents a fundamental change in how we do business. We are moving away from a world of manual spreadsheets and “good enough” reporting. Now, granularity and transparency are the new gold standard.
- In Scope 1, data protects you from greenwashing risks.
- In Scope 2, your procurement aligns with the actual state of the grid.
- In Scope 3, vague administrative burden transforms into a clear map for action.
Clean data is becoming more important for compliance, but it’s also a competitive advantage. Companies that can prove their impact with transparent, primary data will win more tenders, secure better investment, and build deeper trust.
Ultimately, the goal is still to just get started. But remember that data transparency is core to your climate action success.
