New Delhi, August 27, 2026: Aspire Circle and Aspire Impact have launched “Utilities: An ESG Performance Framework”, a sector-specific framework designed to help companies, investors and other stakeholders assess environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks and opportunities across India’s utilities sector.
The publication is part of the Impact Future Project (IFP), a thought-leadership initiative supported by Capgemini. It is the sixth in a planned series of 12 sector-specific ESG performance frameworks aimed at improving sector-level ESG assessment and comparability across the Indian economy. The framework has been developed with inputs from 13 senior industry leaders and practitioners from the power, water, waste management and sustainability sectors.
The framework separates ESG risks from ESG opportunities instead of relying on a single blended assessment. It combines industry-agnostic core KPIs with indicators specific to utilities, covering areas such as emissions and energy management, water stewardship, waste, biodiversity, employee health and safety, diversity and inclusion, customer and product impact, governance, ethical conduct, ESG risk management and disclosures.
Sector-specific risk indicators include transmission and distribution losses, changes in leachate generation intensity, operations in ecologically sensitive areas, treated water discharge and water consumption in water-stressed areas. On the opportunity side, the framework examines sustainable sourcing, alternative materials and processes, product lifecycle assessment and extended producer responsibility (EPR) compliance.
Amit Bhatia, Founder, Aspire Circle and Aspire Impact, said, “India’s utilities sector is fundamental to our economic and sustainability transition. As capital increasingly seeks both resilience and sustainable growth, we need to understand not only the ESG risks companies face, but also the opportunities they are creating. This framework is an attempt to bring greater rigour, comparability and sector relevance to ESG measurement, while ensuring that the indicators reflect the realities of India’s utilities landscape.”
The framework is intended to support better decision-making by providing measurable indicators that can help identify material ESG risks, assess opportunities and strengthen resource management and resilience.
Anurag Pratap, VP & CSR Leader, Capgemini, said, “We believe the time has come to mainstream the principles of an Impact Economy. The Impact Future Project is playing a significant role in accelerating this vision by fostering greater awareness, encouraging collaboration, and bringing together diverse stakeholders to drive meaningful action towards a more sustainable and inclusive future.”
Harpreet Kaur, Chief Knowledge Officer, Aspire Impact, said, “The publication ultimately seeks to make ESG measurement more useful for companies, investors, regulators and other stakeholders by combining a common set of industry-agnostic indicators with utilities-specific KPIs, separating ESG Risks from ESG Opportunities, moving ESG assessment beyond broad sustainability claims towards more measurable, comparable and actionable insights.”
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