The CO2 Performance Ladder (CO2 PL) is a carbon management system that can also be used as a procurement tool. Companies with a CO2 PL certificate receive an advantage when bidding for a tender and this certificate is sometimes required in the tendering process. To obtain the certificate, companies must provide insight into their CO2 emissions and set targets to reduce their emissions. The CO2 PL is owned and managed by the Foundation for Climate Friendly Procurement and Business (SKAO).

The IKEA Foundation supported SKAO with a grant starting in 2021 to explore the feasibility of expanding the use of the CO2 PL outside the Netherlands. We also engaged CE Delft to conduct an evaluation to strengthen the evidence base around the effectiveness of the CO2 PL. This came in two phases: phase 1 summarised status of existing evidence and phase 2 addressed gaps identified from the literature review. Some of the key gaps, which were answered in this evaluation report, relate to the effects of the CO2 PL in the supply chain and mindset of companies towards CO2 reduction.