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Definition

PCAF data quality score Definition

A PCAF data quality score ranks the inputs behind financed-emissions estimates from 1, the highest quality, to 5, the lowest, based on whether data are verified, reported, physically measured or economically estimated.

What is a PCAF data quality score?

A PCAF data quality score shows which input method supports a loan or investment's financed emissions. Score 1 is highest and score 5 is lowest. It does not rate a company's emissions performance or prove its emissions number is accurate.

The criteria depend on the PCAF asset class. For business loans and unlisted equity, score 1 uses verified company emissions with the outstanding amount and financial denominator known. Score 2 covers unverified company emissions or primary energy data with matching emission factors. Score 3 uses primary production data. Score 4 uses company revenue and a sector revenue-based factor. Score 5 relies on sector asset averages or a sector asset-turnover estimate.

Why does a PCAF data quality score matter to you?

A lender or investor may ask for the reporting year, emissions by scope, verification statement, energy or production records, revenue, total equity and debt, and year-end amount outstanding. The financing relationship decides the asset class; these records decide which data-quality option within that method applies. A missing financial denominator can prevent verified emissions from receiving score 1.

PCAF Part A Chapter 6.1 asks financial institutions to describe their data sources, assumptions, factors and publication dates. It also says they should publish a data quality score weighted by outstanding amount, or explain why they cannot, and report the Scope 3 score separately from the Scope 1 and 2 score. Keslio's portfolio management support can organize that collection and reporting across investees.

How is a PCAF data quality score calculated?

Select the PCAF table for the asset class and match each borrower or investee's data to its highest supported option. Record the emissions method, verification status, reporting period, outstanding amount and required denominator. Do not copy a score between asset classes because their options differ.

For an asset class or sector, multiply each loan or investment's score by its outstanding amount, add those products, then divide by the total outstanding amount covered. Weight by financing, not by company count or financed emissions. If you report Scope 3, calculate and report its weighted score separately from the Scope 1 and 2 score.

What mistakes should you avoid?

  • Reading 5 as the best score when PCAF defines 1 as highest quality.
  • Assigning score 1 because emissions were verified while the outstanding amount or required denominator is missing.
  • Giving Scope 3 the same score as Scope 1 and 2 without checking its separate data source.
  • Weighting the portfolio score by financed emissions or borrower count instead of outstanding amount.

Does a PCAF score measure climate performance?

No. A company with high emissions can have score 1 if its GHG Protocol emissions are verified and the financial inputs are available. A lower-emitting company can have score 5 if the lender must estimate from sector assets. Compare emissions and the score as separate measures.

How can a borrower improve its PCAF data quality score?

Give the lender a current GHG inventory with Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 separated, the calculation workbook, factor sources, reporting boundary and third-party verification statement. Also provide total equity and debt for a private company, or the requested listed-company denominator. Without a reported inventory, primary energy or production records can support a better option than a sector economic estimate.

What should you send when a lender asks for PCAF data?

Send the exact reporting period, emissions by scope in metric tonnes CO2e, verification status, calculation method, factor files, exclusions, energy or production records, revenue, total equity and debt, and the applicable financial statements. Label every estimate so the lender can map it to the correct PCAF option.

Example

Suppose an Australian lender has a general-purpose business loan to a private garment and textile factory. At year end, AUD 4 million is outstanding and the factory's total equity plus debt is AUD 20 million. The factory has no reported emissions total, but it provides invoices showing 80,000 litres of diesel used during the reporting year.

For this training example, the lender uses factor key fuel_diesel_litre_average_biofuel_blend_desnz_2026: 2.58354 kg CO2e/litre for diesel, average biofuel blend, published for the United Kingdom in 2026 by UK DESNZ and DEFRA. The source geography does not match Australia, so the lender records that limitation and replaces the proxy with an appropriate Australian factor before external reporting.

Emissions and attribution: 80,000 litres x 2.58354 kg CO2e/litre = 206,683.2 kg CO2e, or 206.6832 tCO2e. The attribution factor is AUD 4 million / AUD 20 million = 20%, giving 41.33664 tCO2e of financed diesel emissions.

This diesel component uses the primary-energy method in PCAF business-loan Option 2a, which maps to score 2 for Scope 1 and 2. A complete Scope 1 and 2 score for the factory requires all other energy sources and any process emissions, plus an appropriate Australian factor in place of the UK proxy. Scope 3 needs its own score. If those checks leave the loan at score 2 and it is the lender's only garment-sector loan, the weighted score is (AUD 4 million x 2) / AUD 4 million = 2.00.

Where it comes up

PCAF business loans and unlisted equity data quality hierarchy from verified emissions to sector estimatesPCAF Part A, third edition, Table 5.2-1, pp. 59-60Official sourcePCAF weighted data quality score by outstanding amount and separate Scope 3 scorePCAF Part A, third edition, Chapter 6.1 and Box 6.1-6, pp. 166-168Official sourcePCAF detailed business-loan data needs, formulas and scoresPCAF Part A, third edition, Annex 10.1, Table 10.1-2, p. 192Official source

Related terms

Financed emissions

Financed emissions are the share of a borrower's or investee's gross GHG emissions allocated to a bank, fund or asset owner through the loans and investments it holds.

PCAF Standard

The PCAF Standard assigns financial activities to methods for measuring and disclosing emissions associated with loans, investments, capital-markets facilitation, and insurance underwriting.

Primary vs secondary GHG data

Primary GHG data records a specific site, product, activity, or supplier, while secondary GHG data estimates that activity with external averages, databases, financial factors, or other proxies.

Scope 3 Emissions

Scope 3 emissions are the indirect greenhouse gas emissions from goods, services, transport, product use, investments, and other upstream and downstream activities outside your company's Scope 1 and Scope 2 boundary.

Sources

Last verified 2026-08-19

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PCAF data quality score Definition | Keslio