Ricardo’s figures add up to victory in Royal Statistical Society awards

Ricardo’s inventory team is celebrating after its work with BEIS won an award for the delivery of the Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors for Company Reporting (GHG factors).

The recognition presented jointly by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) and the Royal Statistical Society (RSS), was announced today (July 15) at a virtual ceremony.

The accolade, that enhances Ricardo’s growing reputation for accurate and comprehensive documentation, was awarded for ‘Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors for Company Reporting’, based on a Statement of Voluntary Compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics.

Ed Humpherson, Director General for Regulation, Office for Statistics Regulation, said: “The judges were extremely impressed by the quality of your application and the way you have used the Code’s pillars, taking a robust and imaginative team approach. Put simply, this project shows leadership, quality and delivery of the highest level.”

The GHG factors output is part of the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (NAEI) work programme that Ricardo continues to deliver under contract to BEIS and Defra. The corporate reporting factors have been developed to be accurate and comprehensive in more than a decade of work with BEIS and WRAP, which also contributed to the entry.

The NAEI is regarded as a world-leading national inventory, and UK experts from Ricardo are routinely invited to participate on international panels and teams to drive up GHG data quality and lead reviews of national reports to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

These GHG factors are the building blocks for accurate, complete reporting of GHG emissions by companies in the UK, for example under the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) scheme. They cover all GHG emission sources that companies may have to consider in developing an emissions inventory or carbon footprint.

Eirini Karagianni, Ricardo’s manager of the GHG Conversion Factors team, said: “We’re always seeking to keep pace with new technologies and emerging new fuels. The management and improvement of the GHG factors is one element that makes it a leading-edge output, worthy of this award, and why these factors are often used by organisations globally, referenced in work across Europe and beyond.

“We have very strong attention to detail across an experienced team of experts that cover all key GHG emission sources that business needs to know about and report on. We understand the data required to apply the factors and the reporting needs for Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3.

“Our team’s insight into the basis of the conversion factors and the trends driving changes in GHG intensity of different fuels, vehicle fleets, waste management options and process sources means that Ricardo are well placed to support organisations to accurately calculate and report their GHG emissions and carbon footprint, and to identify opportunities for mitigation. Our Carbon Team can support the development of net zero targets, roadmaps and understanding the carbon impact of mitigation measures to help achieve net zero whilst minimising exposure to carbon liabilities and risks.”

The GHG factors are used by all organisations across the UK to generate emission estimates for carbon footprints, corporate sustainability reporting, in product-specific life-cycle analysis, to inform evidence for decarbonisation plans and programmes.