PPN 06/21 and Your "License to Operate" in the UK
Nov 27, 2025
For UK manufacturers and construction firms, carbon data is no longer just a "Nice to Have" for the annual sustainability report. It has become a fundamental "License to Operate."
Specifically, if you intend to bid on UK Government contracts worth over £5 million, you are now subject to Procurement Policy Note 06/21 (PPN 06/21).
The Rule PPN 06/21 mandates that bidders must have a published Carbon Reduction Plan that confirms their commitment to Net Zero by 2050. Crucially, this plan must include reporting on specific Scope 3 categories, including business travel, employee commuting, waste, and distribution.
The Commercial Risk Many companies believe they can satisfy this requirement with vague estimates. However, the procurement landscape has shifted. Competitors are now using data quality as a weapon in the bidding process.
If your Carbon Reduction Plan is based entirely on generic spend-based estimates, a competitor with verified primary data can successfully argue that your plan is not "credible" or "technically robust." In a competitive tender, this data gap can be the tie-breaker that loses you the contract.
Audit-Proofing Your Bids Don't wait for a tender to go live before addressing your data gaps. Collecting and verifying Scope 3 data takes months. By establishing a primary data baseline with CarbonAct today, you ensure that when the next major infrastructure project goes out to tender, your bid is not just compliant, but commercially superior.
