Consequences of sustainability reporting mandates: evidence from the EU taxonomy regulation

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper analyses the consequences of the EU Taxonomy Regulation which provides a classification system for sustainable economic activities and requires firms to disclose their activities according to this system. We examined the taxonomy-related disclosures of 45 Austrian nonfinancial companies for the first reporting year 2021 and conducted 19 semi-structured interviews with representatives of four groups of stakeholders: companies subject to the EU Taxonomy Regulation, financial companies, auditing companies, and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs). We structured our data around three topics: (i) consequences on reporting, (ii) capital-market consequences, and (iii) consequences on corporate actions and firms’ outcomes. Our results suggest that for the first reporting year, firms respond to the reporting mandate in an endeavour to comply; firms disclose the required key performance indicators (KPIs) but lack the necessary reporting infrastructure to provide detailed information. Regarding capital-market consequences, all interviewees emphasised the usefulness of clearly defined KPIs and the important role of lenders, expecting banks to integrate the taxonomy-related information in their financing decisions. Regarding corporate actions and firms’ outcomes, we found that the implementation of the EU Taxonomy Regulation has triggered internal discussions on companies’ strategic positioning with respect to sustainability and a race to the top among firms. HIGHLIGHTS We examine the consequences of the EU Taxonomy Regulation on firms' reporting, capital-market effects and corporate actions and firms' outcomes. We describe firms' reporting response in the first year of the new reporting mandate as an endeavour to comply. Regarding capital-market consequences, all stakeholders highlighted the usefulness of clearly defined KPIs and the important role of lenders. Regarding changes in corporate actions, companies have experienced internal discussions on their sustainability-related strategic positioning and a stronger competitive thinking in response to the implemementation of the new reporting requirements.