Toronto and Montreal, October 16, 2012 - Canada's largest public companies are improving transparency on climate change issues, but must improve their performance in acting to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, according to a report published by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) and Accenture (NYSE: ACN).

The 2012 Canada 200 study of the carbon management activity of the largest publicly traded Canadian companies reveals that companies have disclosed more information through CDP this year than in any of the six years that the report has been published.

Respondents showed an average carbon disclosure score of 60, an increase of nine percent from 2011, reflecting improved quality and depth of information provided by individual Canadian companies on their carbon management and disclosure.

The Canada 200 report also shows that 77 percent of responding companies are already integrating climate change into their business strategies, up four percent from last year.

Despite a growing awareness of the business impacts from climate change, companies need to improve their carbon management further, the report states.

For the first time, the Canada 200 Report publishes scores that rate the climate change mitigation actions of Canadian companies. To be named in the Carbon Performance Leadership Index (CPLI), companies must have a score of at least 85 and meet other specific criteria as noted in the report. Bank of Montreal is the sole company to be placed in the new Canadian CPLI.

"From Bay Street to Wall Street, investors are watching out for green returns, and companies seeking a competitive advantage still have opportunities to improve their carbon performance by defining emissions reductions targets, verifying and assuring emissions data, and accelerating achievements in emissions reduction." Zoe Tcholak-Antitch, CDP's North American director. 

"Canadian companies are tackling the challenge of climate change head-on, and moving toward a model of superior, forward-looking leadership that has a better understanding of their carbon risk profile," said Michael Denham, President and Country Managing Director at Accenture in Canada.

"We can expect to see a rising number of Canadian corporations take steps to improve their disclosure and sustainability strategy, as more business leaders recognize that enhancing transparency not only improves their reputation, but their business performance." 

Each year, CDP requests information from 200 of the largest corporations in Canada by market capitalization. In 2012, the request was sent on behalf of 655 institutional investors with more than US$78 trillion in assets. CDP teamed with Accenture who reviewed company responses and wrote this year's Canada 200 report.

Accenture considered results from 107 Canadian corporate respondents related to carbon-related governance, strategy and initiatives, targets, communications, risks and opportunities and emissions. The responding companies represent 79 per cent of the largest 200 Canadian public companies by market capitalization. 

The Canada 200 Report includes many direct responses from Canadian companies on the current risks and opportunities related to climate change. For example, while companies see risk in the uncertainty surrounding regulation, cap-and-trade programs and carbon taxes, some do view cap-and-trade as an opportunity to increase demand for products and services, while carbon and energy taxes are regarded as an opportunity to increase energy efficiency initiatives. 

The leading 10 per cent of companies by carbon disclosure score are recognized in the 2012 Canada 200 Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index (CDLI) as follows: 

2012 Score CDLI Company

91 Bank of Montreal**also ranked in CPLI

90 ARC Resources Ltd.

89 Stantec Inc.

88 Teck Resources Limited

84 TMX Group Inc.

84 Suncor Energy Inc.

84 Barrick Gold Corp.

84 Enbridge Inc.

83 TransCanada Corporation

83 Enerplus Corporation

82 Telus Corporation

82 Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank)

80 Tim Hortons Inc.

79 Emera Inc.

79 Cenovus Energy Inc.

78 Toronto-Dominion Bank

78 Inmet Mining Corporation

78 Nexen Inc.

77 SNC-Lavalin Group Inc.

77 Canadian National Railway Company

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) is an international, not-for-profit organization providing the only global system for companies and cities to measure, disclose, manage and share vital environmental information. Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with 257,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries.