cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/19123746

TLDR (but the report is worth your click as it contains a lot of very illuminating diagrams and tables):

  • The historical overview, spanning from 1750 to 2023, reveals that 67% of global fossil fuel and cement emissions can be traced to 181 entities, with over one-third of these emissions attributed to just 26 producers.

  • In 2023, the database traced 33.7 GtCO₂e of emissions to the 169 active entities, marking a 0.7% increase from 2022. Notably, just 36 companies were linked to over half of global fossil fuel and cement CO₂ emissions that year.

  • The top 20 highest carbon-producing entities in 2023 are dominated by state-owned enterprises, with 16 of the 20 being state-owned. This list also underscores the significant role of Chinese entities, with the eight entities on the list responsible for 17.3% of global emissions in 2023.

  • Coal companies also feature prominently, with seven on the list, six from China and one from India, highlighting Asia’s continued reliance on coal.

  • A significant update in this year’s analysis is the disaggregation of coal emissions previously aggregated at the national level for China, the Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan. Attributing these emissions to individual companies, many of which are state-owned, further emphasizes the dominant role of state-owned enterprises.

  • In fact, state-owned entities have emerged as the largest emitters by type in 2023, with 67 state-owned entities linked to 22.3 GtCO₂e, more than double the 10.2 GtCO₂e attributed to 99 investor-owned entities.

  • Coal remained the largest contributor to emissions in 2023, with its share of total emissions increasing, while cement emissions saw the largest relative rise. In contrast, natural gas emissions declined slightly, and oil emissions remained stable.

  • Regionally, Africa and Europe made some progress in emissions reductions, with most companies in these regions decreasing emissions and overall emissions dropping across all fuels. All other regions saw total emissions increase from 2022, with the majority of companies in those regions, except the Middle East, linked to higher emissions.