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Definition

ESRS E1 Climate Change

Under ESRS E1 Climate Change, an in-scope company reports its material climate plans, targets, energy use, gross emissions, removals, internal carbon prices, risks, and expected financial effects.

What is ESRS E1 Climate Change?

ESRS E1 is the climate standard under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). On 20 August 2026, the in-force version had nine requirements; a Commission-adopted revision with eleven was not yet in force. Confirm the reporting year and ESRS version. The Germany guide covers scope and timing.

Why does ESRS E1 Climate Change matter to you?

A reporting parent may request one disclosure. Current E1-6 needs gross Scope 1, separate location-based and market-based Scope 2 figures, each significant Scope 3 category, and two total-emissions figures in tCO2e.

How does ESRS E1 Climate Change work?

Current E1-1 to E1-4 cover the transition plan, policies, actions, and targets. Keep the plan, base year, milestones, and funding. E1-5 uses megawatt-hours (MWh); E1-6 needs the boundary, factors, and calculation file.

E1-7 separates removals and credits from gross emissions. E1-8 records the internal carbon price and its scope. E1-9 needs assumptions and financial line items for physical risks, such as flooding, and transition risks, such as policy changes.

What mistakes should you avoid?

  • Treating “E1 data” as all nine requirements instead of confirming the code and year.
  • Subtracting removals or carbon credits from the gross E1-6 totals instead of recording them under E1-7.
  • Sending E1-9 risk labels without the time horizon, financial line item, method, and assumptions.

Is ESRS E1 Climate Change mandatory?

Only a company within CSRD scope prepares a mandatory ESRS statement. If it omits E1 because climate is not material, meaning significant for its impacts or financial prospects, ESRS 1 paragraph 32 still requires a detailed explanation and forward-looking analysis.

What should you provide for an ESRS E1 request?

Provide the E1 code, period, boundary, unit, calculation or narrative, assumptions, approval, and source files. E1-5 needs invoices or meter exports; E1-6 needs the emissions workbook and factor register.

Example

Suppose a software and IT services firm in Italy sits inside its parent company's ESRS reporting boundary for the year ended 31 December 2025. The parent asks only for E1-6. The firm's completed inventory shows 42 tCO2e of Scope 1, 310 tCO2e of location-based Scope 2, 190 tCO2e of market-based Scope 2, and 2,458 tCO2e of significant Scope 3 emissions.

The location-based total is 42 + 310 + 2,458 = 2,810 tCO2e. The market-based total is 42 + 190 + 2,458 = 2,690 tCO2e. The firm returns both totals with the four stated figures, a boundary note, and the inventory workbook. It does not prepare the parent's full E1 disclosure.

Where it comes up

ESRS E1 transition plan, policies, actions, and climate targetsDelegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772, ESRS E1 paragraphs 14-34ESRS E1 energy consumption and gross Scope 1, 2, 3, and total GHG emissionsDelegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772, ESRS E1 paragraphs 35-55ESRS E1 removals, carbon credits, internal carbon pricing, and anticipated financial effectsDelegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772, ESRS E1 paragraphs 56-69

Related terms

ESRS (European Sustainability Reporting Standards)

ESRS tell companies reporting under the CSRD which sustainability information to disclose and how to document material impacts, financial risks, governance, strategy, policies, actions, metrics, and targets.

Climate transition plan

A climate transition plan turns a climate target into dated actions, assigned resources, governance, financial assumptions, and progress measures for changing a company's strategy and business model toward a lower-carbon economy.

Energy consumption and mix (ESRS E1-5)

Energy consumption and mix under ESRS E1-5 reports the MWh your own operations consume, split among fossil, nuclear, and renewable sources, with extra fossil detail for specified energy-intensive industry categories, such as manufacturing.

Gross GHG emissions

Gross GHG emissions are Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 greenhouse gases generated during a reporting period before subtracting removals, offsets or carbon credits, reported in metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Materiality

Materiality is the test a company uses to decide which sustainability topics matter enough to manage or report because they could affect its finances, reflect significant impacts on people or the environment, or both.

Sources

Last verified 2026-08-20

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ESRS E1 Climate Change Definition | Keslio