GHG Scopes, Categories, SBTi & CSRD — Primer
Reviewed 2026-10-09. Regulatory facts are indicative (secondary sources) — confirm the official text before client-facing use. Full source list at the end.
The three scopes
From the GHG Protocol, the accounting standard CSRD/ESRS, SBTi and CDP build on. It splits a company's emissions into three scopes so nothing is double-counted within the same company.
| Scope | What it covers | Retailer example |
|---|---|---|
| Scope 1 — direct | Sources the company owns/controls | Store gas boilers, own trucks, refrigerant leaks |
| Scope 2 — energy | Electricity, heat, steam, cooling bought in | Store & warehouse electricity |
| Scope 3 — value chain | Everything else, up- & downstream | Products for resale, customer use, disposal |
Scope 2 is reported two ways: location-based (grid average) and market-based (green contracts/certificates). For a retailer, Scope 3 is usually 80–95%+ of the total. One company's Scope 1 is another's Scope 3.
The 15 Scope 3 categories
1–8 upstream, 9–15 downstream. Brico Dépôt asked for 1 and 11; Javier also covers 2.
| # | Category | DIY-retailer example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Purchased goods & services | Cement, timber, paint, tools for resale |
| 2 | Capital goods | Store construction, racking, forklifts, IT |
| 3 | Fuel- & energy-related | Extraction, refining, grid losses not in S1/S2 |
| 4 | Upstream transport | Freight paid by Brico into its network |
| 5 | Waste in operations | Store packaging, pallet waste |
| 6 | Business travel | Staff flights, hotels |
| 7 | Employee commuting | Staff travel to stores |
| 8 | Upstream leased assets | Leased equipment not in S1/S2 |
| 9 | Downstream transport | Delivery not paid by Brico, customer trips |
| 10 | Processing of sold products | Rarely relevant for a retailer |
| 11 | Use of sold products | Power tools, heaters, boilers, gas BBQs, AC |
| 12 | End-of-life of sold products | Landfill / incineration / recycling |
| 13 | Downstream leased assets | Space Brico rents out |
| 14 | Franchises | Franchised stores, if any |
| 15 | Investments | Equity stakes (financed emissions — big for banks) |
Cat 1, 2, 11, 12 in depth
Cat 1 — Purchased goods & services: cradle-to-gate footprint of everything bought for resale; usually the single largest category. Three methods, crude→precise: spend-based (€ × factor), average-data (kg/units × generic factor), supplier-specific (EPD/PCF — gold standard). In practice a hybrid.
Cat 2 — Capital goods (Javier's workstream): fixed assets kept (stores, racking, forklifts, IT). Full footprint booked in the year of purchase, no depreciation → lumpy. Data source = the fixed-asset register, not the product catalogue.
Cat 11 — Use of sold products: emissions from customers using what was sold. Direct use-phase required (energy-using / GHG-containing); whole lifetime counted in the year of sale. For a DIY retailer can rival Cat 1.
Cat 11 = units sold × lifetime energy use × emission factor
Cat 12 — End-of-life: disposal of sold products. The natural pair of Cat 11.
Opex vs capex (Cat 1 vs Cat 2)
GHG borrows the company's accounting treatment — but no depreciation. Opex → Cat 1 (goods for resale, consumables); capex → Cat 2 (buildings, racking, IT). A €300 drill below the capitalisation threshold is expensed → Cat 1.
SBTi — Science Based Targets initiative
A voluntary body that validates reduction targets as 1.5 °C-consistent. It certifies ambition; it doesn't make anyone report.
Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 — 11 Jun 2026
- Category A / B tiers; the larger tier uses a turnover threshold of ≥ €450m. Brico (via Kingfisher) → almost certainly Category A.
- Only Category A must set near-term Scope 3 targets.
- New Scope 3 rule: any category ≥ 5% of total Scope 3 must be covered by a target → likely why Brico asked for Cat 1 and 11.
- Scope 1 and Scope 2 now get separate targets.
- Transition: V1.3 or V2 until 1 Jan 2028, then V2 mandatory.
CSRD — Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive
EU law: mandatory, audited disclosure in the management report. Detailed rules = ESRS; climate is ESRS E1 (Scope 1, 2, and the material Scope 3 categories).
Omnibus I simplification — Directive (EU) 2026/470 · OJ 26 Feb 2026
- Scope: only companies > 1,000 employees AND > €450m turnover → coverage ~50,000 → ~5,000.
- Timing: new thresholds take full effect for financial years from 1 Jan 2027.
- Lighter content: revised ESRS cut mandatory datapoints by > 60%.
- Small-supplier protection: companies < 1,000 employees can decline value-chain data requests beyond the voluntary SME standard.
How it fits together
| Framework | Role | Nature |
|---|---|---|
| GHG Protocol | How you count | Accounting standard |
| SBTi | What targets you set | Voluntary, reputational |
| CSRD / ESRS | What you must publish | EU law, with assurance |
The SSG angle
- CBAM data feeds Cat 1. CBAM embedded emissions (cement, steel, aluminium) ≈ the supplier's direct + some indirect emissions = supplier-specific Cat 1. Links the CBAM and footprint services.
- CSRD small-supplier protection makes supplier-specific Cat 1 harder to collect from small suppliers → a gap SSG's engagement (easy + worthwhile for the supplier) can fill.
Sources
Dcycle — CSRD Omnibus I · Compliance & Risks — Omnibus I · Nexio — Omnibus I · Nexio — SBTi V2.0 · OneStopESG — SBTi V2.0 · NUS — SBTi V2 · WSP — SBTi V2 briefing