EY invests £100m into new carbon offering

EY has launched its new sustainability service offering, EY Carbon, in response to the chancellor’s announcement during COP26 mandating all UK-listed businesses and financial institutions to publish net zero plans by 2023.

EY Carbon’s aim is to advise and support businesses as they prepare their net zero plans, and the team will help businesses develop “robust” plans while building longer-term sustainability strategies.

EY Carbon is being backed by over £100m of investment by EY in the UK with plans to recruit more than 1,300 professionals over the next three years. It will be led by Rob Doepel, EY’s newly appointed managing partner for Sustainability. He will lead a team of 250 sustainability professionals in the UK, including 12 partners.

Having previously held the position of EY’s market segment leader for Energy, Doepel has over 15 years’ experience focusing on the power and utilities industry, helping clients navigate the consumer, regulatory and political environment across transmission, distribution and retail energy.

Doepel said: “Sustainability is one of the defining issues of our generation and EY has a significant contribution to make in addressing today’s environmental challenges by supporting our clients and our communities. I’m incredibly excited and proud to be leading this effort across EY.

“While we have seen a number of large, medium and small businesses sign up to net zero targets, the new requirement for UK listed businesses to publish their plans by 2023 is a significant shift.”

Alison Kay, EY’s managing partner for Client Service, added: “Decarbonisation is critical to tackling climate change and requires more than just financial data and reporting – it impacts everything from taxation, operating models, supply chains, data, products and much more.

Hywel Ball, EY UK chair, said: “The significant investments we are making in EY Carbon will help support our clients to not only adapt their own operations but also identify and unlock the business opportunities created by decarbonisation – ultimately helping to protect and create long-term value for all their stakeholders.”