Delivering on the European Green Deal: A Private-Sector Perspective

The report finds that while members of the CEO Action Group show high alignment with EGD climate and energy targets, significant challenges remain in reducing Scope 3 emissions, protecting biodiversity, and scaling green innovation. It identifies regulatory complexity, high energy costs, and a shortage of cross-functional green skills as primary barriers. The document recommends streamlining permitting for renewables, refining the EU Taxonomy, and harmonizing sustainability reporting standards to maintain momentum for the green transition.

• Members of the CEO Action Group demonstrate strong alignment with EGD climate and energy goals, with 97% having set climate targets and 82% having set energy targets. Between 2019 and 2022, the Group reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 26%, driven by a 15% decrease in energy consumption and a 14 percentage point increase in the share of renewable energy used.
• Reducing Scope 3 emissions remains a critical challenge for the private sector; while some companies achieved reductions between 15% and 40%, the aggregated Scope 3 emissions for the CEO Action Group remained stable from 2019 to 2022.
• There is a significant gap between strategic intent and measurable action regarding biodiversity; 73% of analysed companies have strategic objectives to minimize biodiversity impacts, but only 15% have set measurable targets due to difficulties in quantification and a lack of external benchmarks.
• The private sector faces substantial barriers to transport decarbonization, specifically high upfront costs, difficulties in installing infrastructure, and insufficient public EV charging networks. However, 54% of surveyed executives expect full fleet electrification by 2030.
• EU innovation is hindered by a higher regulatory burden and financing uncertainties compared to North America and China. While CEO Action Group members spend an average of 4.8% of revenue on R&D (as of 2022), this is higher than the broader European private sector average of 2.2%.
• High and volatile energy prices, exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine, threaten European competitiveness. The report notes that electricity taxation in the EU is on average nine times higher than in the USA, accounting for 34–38% of the final electricity price.
• Regulatory complexity and the short implementation timeline of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) create high compliance burdens and a shortage of skilled professionals. The report advocates for globally harmonized sustainability standards to allow companies to focus on innovation.
• The EU Taxonomy's strict alignment criteria may limit financing for transitional investments and emerging technologies. For example, in a study of 62 buildings, only one was rated as fully EU taxonomy-aligned, despite 41% being sustainably certified or in the process of certification.
• A critical mismatch exists between the demand for green skills and the available workforce, particularly for roles requiring both green and financial proficiency. Talent scarcity is reported between 66% in the Czech Republic and 86% in Germany.

APA

World Economic Forum (2024). Delivering on the European Green Deal: A Private-Sector Perspective. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Delivering_on_the_European_Green_Deal_2024.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Delivering on the European Green Deal: A Private-Sector Perspective. 2024. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Delivering_on_the_European_Green_Deal_2024.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Delivering on the European Green Deal: A Private-Sector Perspective |date=January 2024 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Delivering_on_the_European_Green_Deal_2024.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2024delivering, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Delivering on the European Green Deal: A Private-Sector Perspective}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2024}, month = jan, url = {https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Delivering_on_the_European_Green_Deal_2024.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }