Coal India Limited

Does the core business genuinely avoid or reduce emissions, or build climate resilience? Share of revenue that is actually 'green'. Fossil-dependent models score low.

CIL's core business is extracting and selling fossil fuels at industrial scale — Scope 1 emissions alone exceeded 26.4 billion kg CO2e in 2024, rising year-on-year, with no credible transition plan that would materially reduce the volume of coal mined; peripheral solar projects (70 MWp ground solar) are trivially small relative to this footprint.

Credible, science-based targets (SBTi), a real net-zero plan with progress to date, and CDP disclosure — not just a dated press release.

CIL has stated a qualitative ambition to reach net-zero GHG emissions by 2050 and near-term targets to cut Scope 1 by 33% and Scope 2 by 25% from a 2021 baseline by 2030, but these targets are not SBTi-validated (CIL is categorically ineligible as a coal miner), are not backed by a credible phase-down plan, and the company explicitly supports coal's role in India's energy mix through at least 2040 — directly contradicting 1.5°C science.

Operational footprint, labour and social practices, and governance quality across the company's own operations and supply chain.

CIL publishes mandatory BRSR reports and has some social benefit programs (pension, CSR), but India's CAG audit found systematic environmental violations including air and water pollution exceedances across multiple mines, operations without valid environmental clearances, and failure by six of seven subsidiaries to maintain board-approved environment policies; mine fatality and injury data is tracked but independent safety assurance is absent.

Quality of disclosure, independent third-party verification, and how much hard data backs the company's claims.

CIL discloses Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions in its BRSR (mandated by SEBI for top-1000 listed companies) and has some ISO certifications, but it did not respond to the 2023 CDP Climate Change Information Request, has no SBTi commitment, no independent third-party verification of GHG data evident from public sources, and historical BRSR figures have required retrospective corrections for accuracy.

Controversies, litigation, pollution, fossil-fuel lobbying, conflict-zone involvement and governance scandals. Higher means cleaner.

CIL engaged in documented lobbying via internal letters to weaken India's fly ash disposal regulations between 2019 and 2023, directly opposing public health protections; India's CAG found multiple subsidiaries operating without environmental clearances and with water and air pollution violations; contingent legal liabilities related to environmental claims remain substantial; and CIL's public positioning explicitly advocates for coal's continued dominance beyond 2040, misaligned with IPCC 1.5°C pathways.