Karin Simondon and Tara Thorsen
February 11, 2025
Harmonising the EU sustainability regulations: how to retain value in the Omnibus package
Ramboll’s corporate sustainability experts Karin Simondon and Tara Thorsen explain potential benefits and risks of the upcoming EU Omnibus regulation.
Recently, the European Commission announced it will ease and streamline the administrative burden of the emerging sustainability regulations by merging the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the EU Taxonomy for Sustainable Activities, and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) into a single regulation, an Omnibus package, that is expected to be published on February 26.
The Omnibus package is an interesting yet overestimated concept, especially for companies and sustainability professionals who have already clearly identified overlaps and divergences between the CSRD, the EU Taxonomy, and the CSDDD and are currently implementing them in practice. The Omnibus package should be designed carefully and focus on strengthening the central overlap between the three regulations.
Ramboll believes that the Omnibus package can only be beneficial under these three conditions:
- The due diligence requirements and related reporting of the CSRD, the EU Taxonomy, and the CSDDD must not be reduced.
- These three regulations must not deviate from their foundation: the UN Guiding Principles on business and human rights (UNGPs) and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct (OECDG). The six steps of sustainability as described in the UNGPs and OECDG offer the globally agreed minimum definition of corporate responsibility through a comprehensive and future proofed sustainability due diligence system (Figure 1).
- The existing overlaps between the CSRD, the EU Taxonomy, and the CSDDD must be distinctly highlighted, as well as how they can be leveraged by companies.
Clearly identifying and leveraging the overlaps and synergies between the CSRD, the EU Taxonomy, and the CSDDD are immensely important. These three regulations are pieces of the same puzzle. Put together, they form a complete sustainability due-diligence system. This integrated system provides a unique opportunity for companies to efficiently work with their negative and positive impacts on the environment, human rights, and governance.
Ramboll is already implementing an integrated due diligence system and discovered that companies can save a third of their costs if they follow the same practice.
Beyond addressing the reporting fatigue and overheads costs, this integrated sustainability due diligence system provides key insights on ESG performance, sustainability priorities, and financial risks.
Some companies and politicians argue that the EU’s environmental and social reporting regulations are complex and burdensome. For companies like Ramboll who have identified and leveraged overlaps and synergies between the CSRD, the EU Taxonomy, and the CSDDD, the EU’s Omnibus package may not make much difference in terms of process simplification. Yet for those companies who have not developed an integrated sustainability system, the Omnibus initiative could bring structure and clarity if developed with careful attention to the existing overlaps of the regulations.
Want to know more?
Karin Simondon
Head of ESG and CR
+45 51 61 41 73
Tara Thorsen
Senior Sustainability Specialist - ESG DD
+45 60 36 13 76