Assessing How Big Insurance Firms Report and Manage Carbon Emissions: A Case Study of Allianz

Carbon management is an important topic for investigation to ensure the accountability of firms in meeting Paris Agreement targets. Transparency and rigorous scrutiny are needed to keep industries on track to accomplish a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. To maintain a healthy environment, and promote human and ecosystem health, it will be vital to limit global warming to below 2 °C. Allianz presents a good example of carbon management as they are a leading insurance firm that utilises the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards to report their greenhouse gas emissions. Allianz has promoted important initiatives such as the Net-Zero Climate Alliance and made an array of pledges that promote net-zero business operations by 2050. In 2020, Allianz reported greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 384,178 tCO 2 , a 31% reduction in their emissions compared to 2019 figures. Procuring carbon credits is the main mechanism that Allianz has used to reduce their reportable emissions, as well as making investments into renewable energies—wind and solar. This study is limited by the information provided by Allianz and the accuracy in which they have reported their greenhouse gas emissions and emissions reductions. In the last reporting year, Allianz produced the greatest carbon emissions in the EU/USA insurance sector, producing 189,061 tCO 2 e more than their closest competitor. To achieve net-zero emissions, Allianz will need to increase their investment into carbon offsets and transition to 100% renewable energy use, while concurrently reducing their investment into coal and gas mining industries. This research gives an insight into the greenhouse gas emissions being produced by insurance/investment firms while also detailing the emissions reduction methods that are being employed. This study synthesises scientific literature with business reports to present a detailed account of industry carbon emissions, emissions reductions, and overall progress towards meeting net-zero pledges, in line with Paris Agreement targets. The recommendations made in this study are based on the information provided by Allianz and are designed to be within the scope of what would be possible for this firm. The aim of this study was to determine the actions and issues in the process of carbon management with a specific focus on Allianz. Key objectives of this research are: 1. To determine the net-zero pledges made by Allianz; 2. To determine the carbon emissions and emissions reductions made by Allianz compared to other firms in the sector; and 3. To determine how these emissions reductions have been achieved.