What does the "progress to date" test in criterion C14 of the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) ask of my Scope 1 and 2 target?
C14 says the minimum forward-looking ambition of a Scope 1 or 2 near-term target must be consistent with net-zero by 2050 at the latest, on a linear reduction from your most recent year to 2050. Emissions or intensity must not increase. It is one test of several.
The wording
C14 in the SBTi Corporate Near-Term Criteria: the minimum forward-looking ambition of near-term targets covering Scope 1 and/or Scope 2 is consistent with reaching net-zero by 2050 at the latest, assuming a linear absolute reduction, linear intensity reduction, or intensity convergence between the most recent year and 2050, and not increasing absolute emissions or intensity.
What anchors the line
- The most recent year must be the same year for Scope 1 and Scope 2.
- For submissions in 2026 the most recent inventory must be 2024 or 2025.
- Proxy data is not permitted. You cannot apply base year emissions to the most recent year.
Reading it as arithmetic (my reading)
For an absolute target, the straight line runs from your most recent year's tonnes to zero in 2050. The yearly step is the most recent year's tonnes divided by the years left. Your target year's tonnes should sit at or below that line. This is my reading of the C14 sentence, not an SBTi worked method. C14 does not say the line ends at exactly zero.
Other tests still apply
C15 asks that Scope 1 and 2 targets be consistent with 1.5 degrees Celsius. C16 requires absolute targets to be at least as ambitious as the minimum of the approved 1.5 degrees scenario range, and C17 requires intensity targets to use an approved sector pathway. In my reading, clearing the line in C14 does not by itself clear those.
Example: most recent year 2025, 1,000 tonnes
- Years from 2025 to 2050: 25. Yearly step on the line: 1,000 / 25 = 40 tonnes.
- 2030: 1,000 less (5 x 40) = 800 tonnes, a cut of 200 / 1,000 = 20 percent from 2025.
- 2035: 1,000 less (10 x 40) = 600 tonnes, a cut of 40 percent from 2025.
Example numbers. In my reading C14 is only a floor; C15 to C17 set the 1.5 degrees test, which asks for a much larger cut by 2030 (see the 42 percent answer).
What Senseible does here
Senseible reads fuel invoices and electricity bills into monthly records, so the litres, kilowatt hours and months are in one place to copy from. It does not model target pathways. The monthly records give you the most recent year's tonnes to start from.
- SBTi: most recent inventory year in 2026
- SBTi base year and target years
- What 42 percent by 2030 means
- SBTi intensity targets and sector pathways
Sources: SBTi Corporate Near-Term Criteria, Version 5.3.1, April 2026
Last reviewed 2026-11-05. SBTi updates its criteria from time to time. Check the version your target will be assessed under before you rely on this answer.