SBTi launches website to help companies navigate climate targets 

New platform will provide upfront pricing and eligibility information and bolster body’s governance reforms 

The Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has launched a new website as part of efforts to repair its reputation and provide more information to companies seeking to set climate targets.   

The not-for-profit announced earlier this year that it would spin its validation activities as a means of “strengthening governance through the greater differentiation of its standard-setting and validation activities”. 

The move came after accusations that SBTi was incentivised to loosen its standards, because companies only paid if they had their alignment verified.  

Real Economy Progress previously reported that French regulator AMF suggested there was “a potential conflict of interest within the SBTi, given its partial funding through target validation fees, and the initiative’s interest in growth”.

To combat these concerns, the initiative created a philanthropically-funded body to set its standards, with a revenue-generating subsidiary called SBTi Services, focused on validating companies.  

“The differentiation between these entities is designed to allow both activities to scale at pace, while continuing to drive excellence by supporting organisations in their decarbonization journeys,” SBTi said, adding that there had been an increase of nearly 60% in companies with validated science-based targets over the past nine months. 

This week, SBTi Services launched a dedicated website containing information to help businesses set and submit targets. 

Next week, a ‘validation portal’ will be added to the site, providing firms with upfront details about eligibility and pricing, in a bid to make the process of validating an SBTi target “more user-friendly”. 

“Launching sbtiservices.com is one of the many steps the SBTi is taking to transform the way it operates to support businesses across the world looking to drive much-needed climate action through decarbonisation,” it said in a statement.