| Abstract: | This master's thesis examines ESG reporting by selected large Slovenian companies listed on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange. The analysis focuses on non-financial, or sustainability, disclosures for the year 2024, with particular emphasis on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors included in the companies' annual reports. The aim of the thesis is to determine how accurately, transparently, comprehensively, and comparably companies report ESG indicators.
The theoretical part presents the fundamental concepts of financial, non-financial, and sustainability reporting, as well as the significance of ESG factors, which provide a more comprehensive insight into corporate performance. Since financial indicators alone do not reflect all aspects of business operations, non-financial reporting has become increasingly important. In addition to financial results, companies are expected to disclose their impacts on the environment, employees, human rights, local communities, and corporate governance.
The thesis also presents the legal and regulatory framework for sustainability reporting, with particular emphasis on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), and Regulation (EU) 2020/852 on the EU Taxonomy. These frameworks define the scope and manner of sustainability disclosures and contribute to greater transparency, comparability, and reliability of reported information.
The empirical part is based on an analysis of the annual reports of eight companies listed in the Prime Market of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange: Krka d. d., NLB d. d., Petrol d. d., Zavarovalnica Triglav d. d., Luka Koper d. d., Sava Insurance Group, Cinkarna Celje d. d., and Telekom Slovenije d. d. The analysis covers environmental, social, and governance aspects of reporting, while the companies are also compared according to their industry. To enable a systematic comparison, an ESG reporting evaluation matrix was developed, assessing companies based on the transparency, measurability, and level of detail of their disclosures.
The results indicate that most companies prepare sustainability reports in accordance with European requirements, making ESG reporting increasingly consistent and structured. Nevertheless, significant differences remain, primarily due to the companies' industries, business models, and the environmental and regulatory requirements of individual sectors.
The findings show that ESG reporting among the selected Slovenian listed companies is already well developed and increasingly integrated into corporate strategy, business models, and risk management. However, the reports still differ in terms of transparency, accuracy, and comparability, particularly regarding the measurability of objectives, the level of detail of reported indicators, the structure of disclosures, and the presentation of progress. The thesis concludes that European standards significantly contribute to improving the comparability of ESG reporting, although the content of sustainability reports continues to depend largely on the nature of each company's business activities. |
|---|
