Sustainability Agreement Spain (Acuerdo de Sostenibilidad)

A Sustainability Agreement Spain (Acuerdo de Sostenibilidad Empresarial) is a formal contractual instrument — executed under the freedom of contract principle of Article 1255 of the Código Civil (Real Decreto de 24 de julio de 1889) — by which two or more organisations in Spain commit to specific, measurable environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards in their commercial relationship, supply chain, or joint operations, aligned with the binding legal framework established by Ley 7/2021, de 20 de mayo, de Cambio Climático y Transición Energética (LCCTE), the EU Taxonomy Regulation (Reglamento (UE) 2020/852 de Taxonomía Sostenible), the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD — Directiva (UE) 2022/2464, implemented in Spain through proposed reforms to the Ley de Sociedades de Capital and the Código de Comercio), and the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD — Directiva (UE) 2024/1760).

Spain's Ley 7/2021 de Cambio Climático y Transición Energética is the primary domestic climate statute, establishing Spain's binding national target of carbon neutrality (neutralidad de carbono) by 2050 and an intermediate target of 23% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030 relative to 1990 levels, consistent with Spain's Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement (Acuerdo de París, 12 December 2015, ratified by Spain through EU). Article 29 of Ley 7/2021 requires large Spanish companies to prepare and publish annual climate risk assessments and transition plans (planes de transición) — an obligation that directly incentivises the adoption of sustainability agreements with suppliers and business partners.

The Ley 11/2018, de 28 de diciembre, sobre información no financiera y diversidad (LINFD) — which implemented EU Directive 2014/95/EU (NFRD) in Spain — requires large Spanish companies (those with more than 500 employees or meeting two of three criteria: turnover >€40M, total assets >€20M, average employees >250) to publish annual Estados de Información No Financiera (EINF) covering environmental, social and labour, human rights, anti-corruption, and diversity matters. The LINFD is being superseded by the CSRD implementation, which extends reporting obligations to companies with more than 250 employees.

The EU Taxonomy Regulation (Reglamento (UE) 2020/852) classifies economic activities as environmentally sustainable based on six environmental objectives — climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, sustainable use of water, circular economy transition, pollution prevention, and protection of biodiversity and ecosystems. Financial market participants and large companies subject to the NFRD/CSRD must disclose their Taxonomy alignment percentage (porcentaje de alineación taxonómica) — the proportion of their turnover, capital expenditure (CapEx), and operating expenditure (OpEx) aligned with Taxonomy-compliant activities under the Delegated Acts (Actos Delegados) of the European Commission.

Spanish sectoral sustainability frameworks supplement the general legal requirements — Real Decreto 163/2014 de Huella de Carbono established Spain's voluntary carbon footprint registry (Registro de Huella de Carbono, Compensación y Proyectos de Absorción de CO₂) administered by the Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico (MITERD), now the Ministerio de Medio Ambiente. Companies registering their carbon footprint and committing to reduction targets receive a verification certificate that can be referenced in sustainability agreements as evidence of commitment.

The legal framework governing the Sustainability Agreement Spain (Acuerdo de Sostenibilidad) in Spain draws on several key statutes and regulatory bodies. Under the Ley de Sociedades de Capital (LSC) RDL 1/2010, the Registro Mercantil maintains the register of Spanish companies. The Código de Comercio 1885 governs commercial obligations. The Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria (AEAT) administers Impuesto sobre Sociedades (IS) under Ley 27/2014. The Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia (CNMC) enforces competition law. The Código Civil governs general contractual obligations under Article 1255.

A Sustainability Agreement Spain is needed whenever organisations in Spain wish to formalise their ESG commitments in a legally binding instrument — whether as a standalone agreement, as a sustainability addendum to an existing commercial contract, or as part of a supply chain due diligence framework required by EU and Spanish law.

Sustainability agreements are needed by large Spanish companies subject to the LINFD (Ley 11/2018) and the incoming CSRD obligations, which require supply chain sustainability due diligence — these companies must document the ESG commitments of their material suppliers and service providers to include in their Estado de Información No Financiera and, under the CSDDD framework, to demonstrate compliance with human rights and environmental due diligence obligations.

The agreement is needed when a Spanish sociedad anónima or sociedad limitada applies for green financing (financiación verde) — Green Bonds (Bonos Verdes) under the EU Green Bond Standard (EU GBS — Reglamento (UE) 2023/2631), or sustainability-linked loans (préstamos vinculados a sostenibilidad — SLLs) with margin ratchets tied to ESG Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Banks and bond investors require documented sustainability commitments from the borrower or issuer as part of the financing documentation.

A sustainability agreement is needed when a Spanish company participates in public procurement (contratación pública) governed by Ley 9/2017 de Contratos del Sector Público — Article 202 of Ley 9/2017 permits contracting authorities to require sustainability conditions in contract performance, and companies bidding for public contracts may be required to evidence existing sustainability commitments with their supply chain.

The agreement is needed between a Spanish parent company and its subsidiaries or joint ventures to formalise the implementation of the group's ESG policy — confirming consistent application of environmental targets (GHG reduction pathways calculated under the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard), social standards (compliance with the Convenio de la OIT applicable to each operating country), and governance requirements (anti-bribery compliance under Ley Orgánica 5/2010 and Article 31bis of the Código Penal on corporate criminal liability for bribery offences).

Sustainability agreements are needed as part of mergers and acquisitions due diligence in Spain — purchasers of Spanish businesses increasingly conduct ESG due diligence (diligencia debida ESG) and may require the target company to execute a sustainability agreement as a condition precedent (condición previa) to closing, committing to specific ESG improvements post-acquisition.

Under the Ley de Sociedades de Capital (LSC) RDL 1/2010, the Registro Mercantil maintains the register of Spanish companies. The Código de Comercio 1885 governs commercial obligations. The Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria (AEAT) administers Impuesto sobre Sociedades (IS) under Ley 27/2014. The Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia (CNMC) enforces competition law. The Código Civil governs general contractual obligations under Article 1255.

A valid Sustainability Agreement Spain under Article 1255 of the Código Civil and the ESG regulatory framework must contain the following essential elements to create clear, measurable, and enforceable sustainability commitments.

Identification of Parties and Relationship: Full legal names, CIF numbers, registered addresses, and the nature of the commercial relationship between the parties — supplier (proveedor), purchaser (comprador), service provider (prestador de servicios), or joint venture partner. The scope of the agreement — which products, services, or operations are covered — must be precisely defined.

Environmental Commitments: Specific, measurable environmental targets agreed by the parties, including: (1) GHG emission reduction targets — Scope 1 (direct emissions), Scope 2 (indirect from purchased energy), and Scope 3 (value chain emissions), calculated under the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard; (2) renewable energy sourcing targets — percentage of electricity from renewable sources under Garantías de Origen (Certificados de Energía Renovable issued by REE — Red Eléctrica de España); (3) carbon footprint registration under Real Decreto 163/2014 and the Ministerio de Medio Ambiente's MITERD registry; (4) circular economy targets — waste reduction, recycling rates, and product lifecycle obligations under Ley 7/2022, de 8 de abril, de Residuos y Suelos Contaminados para una Economía Circular.

Social and Labour Standards: Commitments to comply with minimum labour standards — the Estatuto de los Trabajadores (RDL 2/2015), all applicable convenios colectivos, occupational health and safety obligations under Ley 31/1995 de Prevención de Riesgos Laborales and its Reglamentos (Real Decreto 39/1997 — Reglamento de los Servicios de Prevención), and equal treatment obligations under Ley Orgánica 3/2007 para la Igualdad Efectiva de Mujeres y Hombres. Human rights due diligence commitments aligned with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (Principios Rectores de la ONU) and the ILO Core Labour Standards.

Governance and Anti-Corruption: Commitments to maintain an effective corporate criminal compliance programme (programa de cumplimiento penal) under Article 31bis of the Código Penal (Ley Orgánica 10/1995) — including a zero-tolerance anti-bribery policy, a whistleblowing channel (canal de denuncias) compliant with Ley 2/2023, de 20 de febrero, Reguladora de la Protección de las Personas que informen sobre Infracciones Normativas y de Lucha contra la Corrupción (Spanish Whistleblowing Directive implementation), and compliance with Ley 10/2010 de Prevención del Blanqueo de Capitales.

KPIs and Measurement: A schedule of quantitative Key Performance Indicators (Indicadores Clave de Desempeño — KPIs) by which the parties will measure performance against each sustainability commitment — GHG intensity per unit of production, renewable energy percentage, waste-to-landfill rate, gender pay gap (brecha salarial de género) percentage as reported under Real Decreto 902/2020 de Igualdad Retributiva, injury frequency rate (LTIF), and governance score. KPIs must be independently verifiable under a recognised framework — GRI Standards (Global Reporting Initiative), SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board), or the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) under CSRD.

Reporting and Audit Rights: Annual sustainability reporting obligations — each party must provide the other with an annual sustainability report evidencing performance against KPIs, verified by an independent auditor (verificador independiente) accredited under Reglamento (UE) No 1221/2009 EMAS (Eco-Management and Audit Scheme) or by a registered verification body (organismo de verificación acreditado by ENAC — Entidad Nacional de Acreditación). Audit rights — allowing one party to conduct or commission ESG audits of the other's operations upon reasonable notice.

Consequences of Non-Compliance: Remediation provisions for KPI underperformance — notice and cure periods (períodos de subsanación), escalation procedures, and, for material breach, termination rights and liquidated damages (penalidades). Where sustainability commitments are linked to financing terms (sustainability-linked loans with margin ratchets), the agreement should reference the KPI definitions and measurement methodology agreed with the lenders.

Governing Law and Dispute Resolution: Spanish law (Código Civil, Ley 7/2021, and applicable EU Regulations) as governing law, with disputes resolved before the Juzgado de lo Mercantil or through arbitration under the Ley de Arbitraje (Ley 60/2003).

Forms-legal.com provides this Sustainability Agreement Spain as a drafting reference. Companies subject to CSRD and CSDDD obligations should obtain advice from abogados especialistas in ESG law and from accredited sustainability consultants registered with ENAC.

Under the Ley de Sociedades de Capital (LSC) RDL 1/2010, the Registro Mercantil maintains the register of Spanish companies. The Código de Comercio 1885 governs commercial obligations. The Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria (AEAT) administers Impuesto sobre Sociedades (IS) under Ley 27/2014. The Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia (CNMC) enforces competition law. The Código Civil governs general contractual obligations under Article 1255.