Volvo Group
What do our scores mean?
The organizational score represents the degree to which the organization influencing climate policy and legislation. Corporations also have relationship scores reflecting their links with influencers like trade associations. Both are combined to place the corporation in a performance band. Full details can be found here.
Engagement Intensity
The engagement intensity (EI) is a metric of the extent to which the company is engaging on climate change policy matters, whether positively or negatively. It is a number from 0 (no engagement at all) to 100 (full engagement on all queries/data points). Clearly energy companies are more affected by climate regulations and will have a higher EI than, for example retailers. So an organization’s score should be looked at in conjunction with this metric to gauge the amount of evidence we are using in each case as a basis for scoring. On our scale, an EI of more than 35 indicates a relatively large amount of climate policy engagement.
Relationship Score, December 2020
A new batch of industry associations has been uploaded onto the InfluenceMap system and the relationship scores recalculated accordingly.
- Details of Organization Score
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What do the 0,1,2 and NSs, NAs mean?
Each cell in the organization's matrix presents a chance for us to assess each data source against our column of climate change policy queries. We score from -2 to 2, with negative scores representing evidence of obstructive influence. "NA" means "not applicable" and "NS" means "not scored" - that is we did not find any evidence either way. In both cases, the cell's weighting is re-distributed over others. Red and blue cells represent highly interesting negative or positive influence respectively. Full details can be found here.
- Details of Relationship Score
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What is the Relationship Score
A corporation, as well as its organizational score will have a relationship score. It is computed by aggregating the organizational scores of the Influencers (trade bodies etc.) it has relationships with, weighted by both the strength of these relationships and the relative importance of the Influencers towards climate change policy. Full details can be found here.
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QUERIES
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DATA SOURCES | |||||||
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Main Web Site
The main organizational Web site of the company and its direct links to major affiliates and attached documents. |
Social Media
We search other media and sites funded or controlled by the organization, such as social media (Twitter, Facebook) and direct advertising campaigns of the organization. |
CDP Responses
We assess and score responses to two questions from CDP's climate change information request (12.3 a & 12.3c) related to political influence questions (currently these are not numerically scored by the CDP process). |
Legislative Consultations
Comments from the entity being scored on governmental regulatory consultation processes, including those obtained by InfluenceMap through Freedom of Information requests. |
Media Reports
Here we search in a consistent manner (the organization name and relevant query search terms) a set of web sites of representing reputable news or data aggregations. Supported by targeted searches of proprietary databases. |
CEO Messaging
Here we search in a consistent manner (the CEO/Chairman, organization name and relevant query search terms) a set of web sites of representing reputable news or data aggregations. Supported by targeted searches of proprietary databases. |
Financial Disclosures
We search 10-K and 20-F SEC filings where available, and non US equivalents where not. . |
EU Register
Information provided by to the voluntary EU Transparency Register. |
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Climate Science Transparency
Is the organisation being transparent about climate change science? |
2
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NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NA |
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Climate Science Stance
Is the organization supporting the science of climate change and the response demanded (as per the IPCC) |
NS |
0
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NA | NS |
0
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NS | NS | NA |
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Need for Climate Regulation
To what extent does the organization express the need for climate policy and regulations in general. |
0
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NS | NS | NS |
2
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NS | NS | NA |
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UN Treaty Support
Is the organization supporting a global treaty on climate change and the UN FCCC process? |
NS |
1
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NS | NS |
0
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NS | NS | NA |
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Transparency on Legislation
Is the organisation being transparent about their positions on climate change legislation and policy, including CEO statements. |
-1
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NA |
-2
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NA | NA | NA | NS | NS |
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Carbon Tax
Is the organisation supporting policy and legislative measures to address climate change: carbon tax. |
NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NA |
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Emissions Trading
Is the organisation supporting policy and legislative measures to address climate change: emissions trading. |
NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NA |
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Energy Efficiency Standards
Is the organisation supporting policy and legislative measures to address climate change: Energy efficiency standards and targets |
0
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0
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NS |
0
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NS | NS | NS | NA |
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Renewable Energy Legislation
Is the organisation supporting policy and legislative measures to address climate change: Renewable energy targets, subsidies and legislation. |
NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NS | NA |
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Energy Policy and Mix
Is the organisation supporting policy and legislative measures to address climate change: energy policy and the energy mix. We refer to IPCC thinking on renewables, coal, oil and gas. |
NS |
0
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NS |
0
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0
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1
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NS | NA |
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GHG Emission Standards
Is the organisation supporting policy and legislative measures to address climate change: GHG emission standards and targets. |
NS |
0
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NS |
0
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0
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NS | NS | NA |
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Disclosure on Relationships
The Caring for Climate “inventory” of climate change policy influences: Are companies being transparent about their business associations which may impact climate debate and policy |
-1
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NS |
-2
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NA | NA | NA | NS | NS |
Open PDF file of Data Source
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
President of major subsidiary Mack Trucks is on the board of NAM
Martin Weissburg
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Is a member of NAM. Executive Vice President Volvo Group is Volvo Group representative for National Association of Manu facturers (NAM)
Dennis Slagle
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
President of major subsidiary Mack Trucks is on the board of NAM
Martin Weissburg
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Is a member of NAM. Executive Vice President Volvo Group is Volvo Group representative for National Association of Manu facturers (NAM)
Dennis Slagle
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Subsidiary of Volvo Group is a member of SIAM
Mr Suresh Chettiar
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Is a member of SIAM
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Subsidiary of Volvo Group is a member of SIAM
Mr Suresh Chettiar
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Is a member of SIAM
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Director of subsidiary Volvo Compact Equipment is on the board of a sub-federation of UIMM
Dominique Gertner
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
Director of subsidiary Volvo Compact Equipment is on the board of a sub-federation of UIMM
Dominique Gertner
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
A subsidiary of Volvo is an indirect member of BDI via VDA
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
A subsidiary of Volvo is an indirect member of BDI via VDA
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
A subsidiary of Volvo is an indirect member of BDI via VDA
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
InfluenceMap Comment:
A subsidiary of Volvo is an indirect member of BDI via VDA
How to Read our Relationship Score Map
In this section, we depict graphically the relationships the corporation has with trade associations, federations, advocacy groups and other third parties who may be acting on their behalf to influence climate change policy. Each of the columns above represents one relationship the corporation appears to have with such a third party. In these columns, the top, dark section represents the strength of the relationship the corporation has with the influencer. For example if a corporation's senior executive also held a key role in the trade association, we would deem this to be a strong relationship and it would be on the far left of the chart above, with the weaker ones to the right. Click on these grey shaded upper sections for details of these relationships. The middle section contains a link to the organization score details of the influencer concerned, so you can see the details of its climate change policy influence. Click on the middle sections for for details of the trade associations. The lower section contains the organization score of that influencer, the lower the more negatively it is influencing climate policy.
Volvo group appears to have a mixed and at times contradictory engagement with climate policy.
The company is supporting the Paris Agreement, signing the ‘We are still in Pledge’ in the US in 2017 and in April 2020 suggested that it “shared the Green Deal vision of sustainable transport and a carbon neutral Europe by 2050”
In 2018, Volvo Group appears to have advocated to the Swedish Government that the EU Commission proposed CO2 targets for heavy duty vehicles are “far too ambitious”, instead suggesting weaker targets with smaller penalties. Despite this, Volvo’s 2019 Sustainability Report (released in 2020) states that EU efforts to regulate CO2 emissions from heavy duty vehicles proceeded with “broad support from the Volvo Group.” The company characterises the position of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), of which Volvo Group is a member, in the same way, despite the fact that ACEA was highly oppositional to these standards, arguing that they were far too aggressive and advocating that cuts to emissions “should happen at a pace that is realistic.”
Volvo Group’s sustainability report also does not disclose it’s support for rollbacks to US Federal CAFE standards, outlined in a letter sent to President Donald Trump in June 2019. Volvo Group also opposed California’s Advanced Clean Trucks Regulation, arguing that sales mandates were inappropriate and for greater flexibility in the regulation in December 2019 and May 2020. Despite this, Volvo Group has opposed a loophole in US fuel economy standards for trucks and has supported certain vehicle replacement schemes and incentives to encourage greater uptake of vehicles that produce fewer emissions.
Volvo Group provides no disclosure of it’s trade association memberships, stating instead that said disclosure is “available on request.” Volvo Group retains memberships to a number of trade associations that are actively opposed to ambitious climate policy. For example, Volvo Group CEO Martin Lundstedt is on the board of ACEA, which has actively opposed proposed heavy-duty vehicle standards in Europe between 2016-2020. Volvo Group Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg is chair of the European Roundtable of Industrialists which has been also been oppositional to climate ambition in Europe in the past but appears in 2019-2020 to be evolving this position. Further to this, Volvo Group is a member of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), which has opposed US climate policy leadership, including actively opposing various strands of climate regulation in the country.