Resource
25 Jun 2026
Energy-intensive organisations face a complex balancing act. They need to manage rising energy costs, maintain compliance, reduce carbon emissions and demonstrate progress towards long-term sustainability goals. For manufacturers, industrial operators and other high-consumption businesses, this is not only a reporting challenge. It is a strategic issue that affects cost control, operational resilience and investment planning.
Two important areas often sit at the centre of this challenge: Climate Change Agreements and SECR reporting. Both relate to energy use and carbon reduction, but they serve different purposes.
A Climate Change Agreement, often known as a CCA, can help eligible organisations reduce their exposure to the Climate Change Levy in return for meeting agreed energy efficiency or carbon reduction targets. SECR, or Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting, requires qualifying organisations to report energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and energy efficiency actions within annual reporting.
Understanding how the two connect can help energy intensive industries move beyond minimum compliance and create a more joined-up approach to energy, carbon and cost management.
Climate Change Agreements are voluntary agreements between eligible energy-intensive organisations and the government. They are designed to encourage reduced energy use and lower CO₂ emissions while helping eligible businesses manage exposure to the Climate Change Levy.
In return for meeting ambitious energy efficiency or carbon reduction targets, eligible organisations can receive a reduction of up to 92% on Climate Change Levy, while manufacturers within mineralogical and metallurgical sectors may be eligible for up to 100% relief. CCAs can carry penalties for non-compliance, including late reporting, incorrect information or failure to update changes in circumstances.
For organisations with high energy consumption, a CCA can therefore offer a valuable route to cost reduction. However, it also requires robust data, careful planning and a clear strategy for meeting targets.
In practical terms, the value of a CCA is strongest when it is treated as part of an active energy management programme, not simply as a tax relief mechanism.
Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting, or SECR, is a UK reporting framework designed to improve transparency around organisational energy use and carbon emissions.
Requirements include annual reporting of energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and related information for UK quoted companies, large unquoted companies and large LLPs.
SECR is mandatory for large companies meeting two or more criteria: turnover of £36 million or more, balance sheet totals of £18 million or more, or 250 or more employees. Zenergi’s energy experts manage the collation, calculations and reporting of energy consumption and carbon emissions across Scopes 1, 2 and 3, helping qualifying organisations understand how and where they use the most energy.
For energy-intensive organisations, SECR reporting is more than an annual disclosure exercise. It creates a structured view of energy use, emissions and efficiency actions, which can support both compliance and wider carbon reduction planning.
Although Climate Change Agreements and SECR both involve energy data, they are not the same.
A CCA is primarily linked to eligibility, agreed performance targets and Climate Change Levy relief. It is particularly relevant to organisations within qualifying industrial sectors or facilities.
SECR is a corporate reporting requirement. It is focused on disclosing energy consumption, emissions and energy efficiency measures in annual reports. It can apply to large quoted companies, large unquoted companies and large LLPs, depending on organisational status and thresholds.
The key difference is purpose:
Together, they can help organisations turn energy data into operational insight, compliance evidence and a clearer route to cost and carbon reduction.
For a high-consuming organisation, the strongest approach is to connect both processes through one reliable energy data framework. That reduces duplication, improves consistency and helps ensure compliance activity informs practical decision-making.
For energy intensive industries, the cost of energy can have a direct impact on margins, production planning and competitiveness. At the same time, customers, investors, regulators and supply chain partners increasingly expect stronger evidence of carbon management.
The CCA scheme can support eligible organisations by reducing Climate Change Levy exposure. SECR can then provide annual visibility of energy use, emissions and energy efficiency measures. When managed together, both can support a more mature approach to energy and carbon governance.
This is especially important where organisations operate multiple sites, complex processes, high-usage equipment, industrial heating systems, refrigeration, compressed air, production lines or energy-intensive buildings.
These environments often have significant opportunities for energy efficiency improvement, but those opportunities can be difficult to prioritise without accurate consumption data, clear baselines and a structured reporting process.
SECR is closely linked to emissions reporting. We support reporting across Scopes 1, 2 and 3, helping organisations create a clearer picture of energy consumption and emissions across buildings, assets and operational activities.
Scope 1 emissions typically relate to direct emissions from owned or controlled sources. Scope 2 relates to purchased electricity and energy. Scope 3 covers other indirect emissions, including parts of the value chain such as business travel, waste and purchased goods and services.
For many energy-intensive industries, Scope 3 can be harder to measure because it depends on data from suppliers, transport activity, materials, product use or other value chain activity. This is where our “Getting to Grips with Scope 3” white paper can naturally support the next stage of understanding, helping organisations think beyond operational reporting and start building a more complete view of their wider carbon impact.
While Climate Change Agreements focus on eligible energy use and agreed targets, Scope 3 thinking helps organisations understand the wider emissions context that may influence customer expectations, procurement requirements and long-term net zero planning.
The greatest value comes when compliance data is used to support practical improvements.
Our CCA service keeps customers on track through monthly and quarterly data reports, progress updates and energy efficiency scoping surveys. Savings achieved can be used to fund energy improvements, creating ongoing value.
Our SECR service helps organisations understand consumption and costs. The process can help create an evidence pack covering Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions and support energy, carbon and financial savings.
For energy-intensive organisations, this may include:
The evolving landscape of net zero white paper can act as a useful resource. Once compliance reporting has established a clearer baseline, organisations can use that evidence to shape more credible decarbonisation plans, investment cases and stakeholder communications.
The CCA scheme has moved into a new phase for 2026 to 2030, including three additional target periods: Target Period 7 from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026;, Target Period 8 from 1 January 2027 to 31 December 2028; and Target Period 9 from 1 January 2029 to 31 December 2030.
GOV.UK’s 2024 biennial progress report states that the new scheme sets targets at facility level, replacing the previous approach of “bubbled” agreements across multiple facilities, with the intention of providing an improved incentive to implement energy efficiency or decarbonisation measures at all CCA sites.
For organisations participating in the CCA scheme, this increases the importance of facility-level visibility, accurate baseline data and a clear plan for meeting targets.
Organisations that have historically managed CCA data centrally may need to review whether their site-level reporting, metering and accountability processes are strong enough for the new phase.
Compliance frameworks are often treated separately. In reality, Climate Change Agreements and SECR reporting can both support the foundations of a credible net zero strategy.
A CCA can help eligible organisations focus on energy efficiency and carbon saving targets. SECR provides annual reporting visibility of energy use, emissions and efficiency measures. Together, they can help build a reliable evidence base for investment decisions, internal governance and external reporting.
For organisations beginning to formalise their net zero pathway, this data can help answer important questions:
The strongest net zero strategies are built on defensible data, not assumptions. For high-consuming organisations, CCA and SECR data can provide the operational evidence needed to prioritise realistic and commercially viable action.
We support organisations across energy compliance, reporting, carbon reduction and energy efficiency.
For Climate Change Agreements, we help eligible organisations navigate complex legislation, understand eligibility, manage reporting requirements and maintain progress against agreed targets. Our service includes support with compliance, data reports, progress updates and energy efficiency scoping surveys.
For SECR reporting, we helps qualifying organisations collate data, calculate emissions, prepare reporting outputs and identify opportunities to reduce consumption, costs and carbon. Our service covers energy consumption and carbon emissions across Scopes 1, 2 and 3.
For energy-intensive organisations, this combined support can reduce administrative burden, improve confidence in compliance and help turn reporting into practical improvement.
We can support with:
If your organisation is already part of the Energy Intensive Industries (EII) scheme, considering a CCA, or preparing for annual SECR disclosure, we can help you bring compliance, cost reduction and carbon management into one clearer programme.
If you are unsure how Climate Change Agreements and SECR apply to your organisation, start by reviewing three areas:
From there, you can build a more coordinated compliance programme that supports both immediate obligations and longer-term energy performance.
Climate Change Agreements and SECR reporting help energy-intensive organisations manage compliance, reduce energy costs and improve visibility of carbon emissions.
By connecting both frameworks, businesses can strengthen reporting, identify efficiency opportunities and build a clearer route towards long-term cost and carbon reduction.
