ERM reports $1 billion revenues, boosts global renewable energy capacity
The annual report of ERM suggests that the sustainability consultancy has surpassed global revenues of $1 billion. Along the way, ERM has helped clients to boost the world’s renewable energy capacity by over 160 gigawatts, among a number of other sustainability achievements.
ERM is the world’s largest pure play sustainability consultancy. Over the past decade, ERM has been expanding at pace, accelerated by a buy-and-build strategy that saw over 20 acquisitions join its ranks since 2010. The firm now boasts a global team of more than 8,000 experts in over 170 offices across 39 countries, making it one of the largest independent sustainability consultancies in operation.
In 2020, the firm surpassed global revenues of $1 billion for the first time, and two years later, it recorded a record taking of $1,161 billion for the 2022 financial year. According to its latest release, the 2023 financial year was another year of “unprecedented growth for ERM” – which again saw revenues at above the billion-mark.
However, the firm is also keen to measure its success beyond the traditional means of the consulting industry. ERM also measures the positive impact its projects have in terms of sustainability; on its clients and the planet. Chief among those achievements is ERM’s support in the installation of over 160 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity – the equivalent to the annual carbon emissions of over 36 million US households – via a number of key client projects. At the same time, it was involved in projects which saw over 279 hectares of land remediated for beneficial use.
Tom Reichert, ERM’s group CEO, commented, “We know that the greatest impact we can have on the world is through the work we do for our clients. We are proud of the achievements set out in this report, which are testament to the passion and talents of our people. We must continue to harness their skills and the wider capabilities of the sustainability ecosystem to accelerate progress against the world’s sustainability challenges. The time to shape a more sustainable future is now.”
The success of ERM’s sustainability advice seems to be rapidly drawing in new clients, too. According to the firm, it enjoyed a 34% increase in project sales over the last financial year, assisting clients with transitioning to a lower-carbon economy.
It was not only other firms who were the subject of ERM’s sustainability drives, though. Despite adding five new firms to its growing portfolio across its global energy, sustainability and digital solutions teams, ERM still managed to align its own operations with science-based targets which are consistent with the 1.5 degrees target of the Paris Agreement. Thanks to this, the company expects to achieve operational net-zero by 2025.
The company is not resting on its laurels, though, and in 2022 it also published a new biodiversity policy. On top of its net-zero policy, this sets out ERM’s commitment to the protection and restoration of biodiversity across ERM’s own operations, its client engagements and its partnerships, including the ERM Foundation.
