The mining industry has made the biggest year-on-year improvement in climate-related financial disclosures among 13 key sectors, according to the EY Global Climate Action Barometer 2024.

The sector’s quality score rose by 7 percent to 58 percent and disclosure coverage jumped from 93 percent to 99 percent, outpacing industries such as banking, real estate and technology.

Despite the progress, the sector still lags behind in critical areas, such as the integration of climate risk into financial statements and quantitative scenario analysis, underscoring the need for more substantive climate action.

“With time running out to keep global warming on a below 2°C trajectory, stakeholders are expecting genuine, rigorous improvement,” the report stated.

Scenario Analysis Lags

Mining firms are showing notable improvement in governance, with a score of 59, about 5 percent higher than the cross-sector average.

Many leading companies now detail board-level oversight, committee roles and executive incentives tied to climate goals in their financial reporting.

However, when it comes to scenario analysis — a key pillar of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures — the mining sector lags. Only 42 percent of miners conduct quantitative climate risk assessments, 5 percent below the cross-sector average.

Challenges cited include the operational complexity of mining, varying ore characteristics and insufficient modeling tools.

Financial Risk Remains Overlooked

EY found that roughly 70 percent of mining companies now disclose decarbonization strategies, with many engaging regulators and industry peers to align with global transition plans.

Despite this, only 12 percent of firms quantify climate-related financial risks in their statements, a significant oversight given the sector’s high exposure to market, regulatory and reputational risks.

The International Sustainability Standards Board is expected to release new guidance to address this gap.

“As we shift from voluntary to mandatory reporting, credible transition planning will become a competitive advantage,” said Fiona A. Hancock, climate change and sustainability services partner at EY Australia, in the report.

Scope 3 Underreported

While 75 percent of mining firms now identify business opportunities from the green transition — particularly in electric vehicles and metal recycling — only a fraction disclose plans to reduce Scope 3 emissions.

Most decarbonization efforts remain focused on Scope 2 or indirect electricity emissions, with just 20 percent of companies reporting targets for Scope 3 emissions, such as supply chain and product use.

This limits transparency and slows accountability, the report said, noting that better data collection and cross-industry collaboration are key to closing this gap.

Call to Action

EY’s report concludes with a sharp call to action. It urges mining companies to embed sustainability in corporate strategy, strengthen governance and internal controls for better data accuracy and adopt advanced modeling tools to assess long-term risks.

Recommendations include:

  • Linking executive compensation to ESG targets
  • Using geospatial and climate data to assess physical risks
  • Disclosing how climate considerations influence capital allocation and asset closure

Outlook: progress, but urgency rising

The EY study, based on disclosures from 52 mining companies across 51 countries, warns that while the sector is progressing, the pace is not fast enough to align with global net-zero targets.

“Mining companies must accelerate their transition with a focus on resilience, financial integration and innovation,” the report said, adding that those who lead on climate risk transparency will be best positioned to capture long-term value.

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