Guest blog: Unlocking New Revenue: How Accountants Can Turn Carbon Reporting into a new service line

As sustainability regulations tighten and stakeholders demand greater ESG credentials, businesses are increasingly facing a new challenge: carbon reporting.

According to the UK Business Climate Hub (1), 46% of organisations in the UK and 37% of SMEs have had a request for carbon data in the past 12 months. Larger companies are gearing up for forthcoming mandatory reporting legislation, and smaller companies are contending with their own looming requirements. Even if companies escape direct regulation, they will still be caught by implication of sitting within a corporate supply chain. Already in the UK, for example, NHS procurement activities require a Carbon Reduction Plan (CRP) covering Scope 1, 2, and relevant Scope 3 emissions.

Many companies – especially SMEs – will struggle to meet these requirements due to the complexity of the data, or simply because of a lack of time and resources. Therefore, as accountants already have the access to financial data, professionalism and advisory skills needed to manage carbon reporting, the industry has a valuable opportunity to support their clients in this area, and in the process create new revenue streams alongside a growing carbon accounting market, which is projected to grow by 22.9% annually over the next five years.

Leveraging carbon accounting software can unlock this opportunity for accountants, enabling them to help their clients measure and report on emissions, and build decarbonisation strategies. However, new research from climate reporting platform Trace reveals that the accountancy industry is largely unprepared to do so, despite acknowledging the benefits of offering such services.

The report, Climate Reporting Revolution: The Future of Accounting (2), shows that 96% of accountants recognise that offering climate reporting services would yield important benefits, such as new revenue streams, an enhanced reputation, competitive advantage and increased customer retention.

However, it also reveals that 67% of accountants feel unprepared to assist clients in carbon reporting, while 30% aren’t even sure which of their clients will be affected by mandatory reporting - indicating a gap in knowledge.

Essentially, educating clients transforms climate reporting from a compliance exercise to a strategic opportunity. This shift in perspective drives demand for accounting services that go beyond basic compliance, encompassing advisory, forecasting, and value creation.

Accountants that create this demand can then use platforms, such as Trace, to complete carbon footprints for clients, build carbon reports, upskill teams, and diversify their revenue streams. Trace provides go-to market support, carbon accounting training, pricing advice and commercial collateral, designed to get your business ready to serve the carbon accounting market. For more information, visit our-trace.com.

Climate, Environment and Sustainability Programme activities

The techUK Climate Programme provides opportunities for members to present tech solutions that assist carbon emission reduction, circularity, and human rights goals. We also help our members with their own net zero transition, including measurement, implementation, compliance, and reporting. Visit the programme page here.

techUK is pleased to launch its latest Climate Campaign Week, running from 10 to 14 February 2025. The focus of this campaign week is Technology as an Enabler for Climate Resilience. From heatwaves and droughts to flooding, extreme weather is placing severe pressures on the UK’s infrastructure. Throughout the week, we will be coordinating member content across different stages of resilience to demonstrate the leading role that digital technologies will play in delivering a more resilient UK.

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