Century Plyboards (India) Limited received an independent ESG rating of 72.5, translating to a ‘Medium’ category score and a B+ grade, from SES ESG Research Pvt. Ltd. for FY 2025. The company showed year-over-year improvement in its overall ESG score, rising from 68.0 in 2024. Highlights include achieving Zero Liquid Discharge across all facilities and improving renewable energy usage to 79.57% of total consumption. Governance saw score improvements, though certain labor practices and governance structure elements remain areas for development.
Independent ESG Rating Assessment
Century Plyboards (India) Limited (CPIL) has been assigned an ESG rating of 72.5 by SES ESG Research Pvt. Ltd. for the fiscal year 2025, up from 68.0 in 2024, achieving a YoY change of 4.5%. This score places the company in the ‘Medium’ category with an ESG grade of B+. SES independently prepared this report based on publicly disclosed information.
Pillar Performance Overview (Adjusted Scores)
The evaluation factors showed mixed results, with Governance leading the improvement:
- Environment: Increased from 50 in 2024 to 61 in 2025.
- Social: Increased from 71 in 2024 to 74 in 2025.
- Governance: Increased from 80 in 2024 to 81 in 2025.
The overall adjusted ESG score stands at 72.5, compared to the industry average score of 72.5. The Parivartan Score, measuring transition progress based on quantitative parameters, was 52 for 2025.
Key Environmental Highlights and Concerns
The Environment pillar (Weighted at 31.2%) saw notable achievements, particularly in circularity and energy:
- Renewable Energy: The share of renewable energy in total consumption increased to 79.57% in FY 2025 (up from 77.86%).
- Water Management: CPIL has successfully implemented Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) mechanisms across all Indian facilities, recycling treated wastewater for various purposes.
- Intensity Improvements: Intensity for energy consumption, GHG emissions, and water consumption linked to turnover and output decreased compared to the previous fiscal year.
Areas requiring attention in Environment include the non-disclosure of Scope 3 emissions and an increase in air emissions (SOx and PM) compared to FY 2023-24. Furthermore, the proportion of waste disposed of through landfilling increased to 6.0% in FY 2025.
Social Performance and Workforce Development
The Social pillar score increased slightly to 74. Key positive indicators include:
- Health & Safety: The Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) for employees dropped significantly from 3.17 to 1.71 per million hours worked.
- Human Rights Training: 100% of employees and workers received human rights training.
- Zero Incidents: The company reported zero fatalities in FY 2024-25 and zero sexual harassment complaints for the last two years.
Conversely, disclosures indicated a material gap of over 20% in median remuneration between male and female workers. Additionally, only ~49% of non-permanent workers receive more than the minimum wage.
Governance Structure and Compliance
The Governance score rose to 81. Compliance across key areas remains robust:
- Compliance: Scores for Statutory & Secretarial Auditors, Audit & Financial Reporting, and Ethics/Bribery/Corruption remained at 100% or high.
- Auditors: Statutory Auditors M/s. S.R.Batliboi & Co. LLP were reappointed for a five-year term.
SES raised governance concerns regarding the combined role of Chairman and Managing Director (Mr. Sajjan Bhajanka) and the low Board attendance (50%) of Independent Director Mr. Ajay Baldawa, who has since been appointed as a new ID.
Customer Focus and Engagement
Customer Orientation & Welfare saw an increase in score to 77. The company maintained strong product quality standards, holding ISO 9001 certification, and reported zero product recalls in the last two fiscal years. However, total customer complaints increased from 2,914 in FY 2024 to 3,481 in FY 2025.
CSR and Inclusive Development
The CSR score improved to 88. CPIL reported spending ₹9.69 crores on CSR activities in FY 2025, exceeding the statutory requirement of 2%.
- Inclusive Sourcing: Direct sourcing from MSMEs/small producers increased to 10.90% (up from 3.80%).
- Job Creation: CPIL spent 45% of its wage cost on employment in rural regions.
Data Security Posture
The Cyber Security & Data Privacy score declined slightly to 80. While the company affirmed zero instances of data breaches and maintains an IT policy, the policy document is not publicly disclosed on the website.
Source: BSE
