Builds on last year’s finding of a market-wide retreat from Net Zero commitments, showing RGC’s portfolio held its ground even as voluntary reporting slipped. Only 3% of the portfolio is Not Aligned with net zero goals — the lowest of any benchmark tracked — while 48% is Aligned or Aligning (62% once non-reporting clean tech holdings are included), and the portfolio remains the most carbon-efficient among its peers at 65 tons of CO₂ per $1 million of sales versus 105 for the Russell 1000 Value. Also asks whether AI is becoming the next high-emissions sector, as data center growth is now outpacing Big Tech’s own decarbonization targets.

This year’s report examines climate commitments within our portfolio and across the broader market—highlighting which companies are making real progress toward their goals and which are falling short. Notably, 2024 marked the first year in which more companies withdrew from Net Zero commitments than joined them, signaling a meaningful shift in the climate disclosure landscape. We also take a closer look at Big Tech—once a leader in corporate decarbonization—as it increasingly emerges as a high-emissions sector requiring greater scrutiny.

As Redwood Grove has grown, we’ve heard increased interest from our client and allocator community on how asset managers can be steering their portfolio towards a net zero transition. Our 2024 Impact report shares our thinking on this, as well as the differentiating framework Redwood Grove has always had in evaluating the financial impact of climate change on our portfolio companies in parallel with deep fundamental analysis. Compared to the prior reporting period, our portfolio’s net zero alignment and carbon efficiency measures improved, with 72% of our portfolio classified as Aligning or Aligned with net zero goals and an additional 13% of portfolio comprised of clean tech companies. Read more about the climate stories for each of our portfolio companies and our net zero reporting.

Climate research and analysis has been an integral part of Redwood Grove Capital’s (RGC) investment process since its inception in 2016. RGC’s process has always had two distinct and equally important parts – fundamental value analysis and climate impact analysis. With this report, we dive into the impact our portfolio companies have on climate through their operations and products and compare them to market benchmarks.