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c02 performance ladder certification
DEKRA Audit Netherlands

Make CO2 reduction measurable with the CO2 Performance Ladder

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CO2 Performance Ladder

Create competitive advantage with the CO2 Performance Ladder certification

Any organization that cares about sustainability knows that CO2 reduction and energy savings are important topics of debate. Are you already actively taking steps to reduce your organization’s CO2 emissions? And do you want to make the results measurable? The CO2 Performance Ladder could be an option for you.

The benefits of the CO2 Performance Ladder

Do you want to certify your organization against the CO2 Performance Ladder? DEKRA Audit can handle the assessment and certification for you. This provides several benefits:
  • Certification demonstrates your organization’s commitment to reducing its CO2 emissions and energy consumption.
  • The higher your organization is on the ladder, the greater its chance of securing contracts. Sustainability, together with previous experience and cooperation, plays an important role in awards.
  • Your energy costs will fall because you are actively taking steps to reduce your energy use.
  • Certification shows that your organization values sustainability.
  • Your organization is future-proof because it fits in well with European plans for a CO2 neutral society.
  • The CO2 Performance Ladder is an internationally recognized management system.
  • The CO2 Performance Ladder can be used as a procurement requirement for companies subject to the CSRD.

About the CO2 Performance Ladder

The CO2 Performance Ladder consists of three levels, with level 3 being eligible for certification. Each level has its own requirements. The requirements for level 1 relate to your organization’s CO2 emissions. The requirements for levels 2 and 3 are more extensive and relate to the CO2 emissions of your organization, your sector and the chain as a whole. The requirements for the levels are broken down into four categories:
  • Insight
    At level 1, you provide an insight into your organization’s CO2 emissions by answering the following two questions: How high are your CO2 emissions? What is responsible for them?
  • Reduction
    Your organization has formulated ambitious CO2 reduction goals and linked control measures and an action plan to them. What do you intend to do to reduce emissions and energy consumptions? How do you intend to structure your control measures?
  • Communication
    Your organization communicates about the two points above, both internally and externally. This gives everyone an insight into your energy consumptions and emissions, goals, control measures and action plan.
  • Collaboration
    In order to achieve energy reduction and CO2 savings, collaboration within the supply chain or sector is essential.
Each level has its own specific requirements for the categories above. If your organization meets the requirements for a particular level, you will be eligible for the relevant certification. For a detailed description of the four categories, see chapter 2 in the following Dutch CO2 performance ladder document .

Step-by-step plan for certification against the CO2 Performance Ladder

Certification against the CO2 Performance Ladder is obtained via the certification process. The first step involves identifying your organization’s energy flows and CO2 performance, aided by checklists and the audit table. This information is then audited by the experts at DEKRA for possible certification against the CO2 Performance Ladder. The audit results determine which level on the CO2 Performance Ladder applies to you. If the audit shows that you have met the requirements applicable, you receive certification for the level in question; it is valid for three years. Every year after this, an audit will be carried out to see whether your organization still meets the requirements. If it does, the validity of your certification will be extended.

CO2 Performance Ladder certificate by DEKRA

Would you like to see which level on the CO2 Performance Ladder applies to your organization? The experts at DEKRA are happy to audit your energy- and CO2 performance. You might be interested to know that it is easy to combine certification for the CO2 Performance Ladder with audits for quality standards​. For example, the ISO 9001 audit for quality management and the ISO 14001 audit for environmental management. Our experts are always happy to discuss options with you, so please don't hesitate to contact us.
NOTE: It is still possible to have audits for Manual 3.1 conducted until January 14, 2027. These certificates will remain valid until the next (annual) audit. This means that valid certificates for Manual 3.1 can still exist until January 14, 2028 (36 months after the publication date of Manual 4.0).