Mercedes-Benz Group AG – Lobbying Governance & Transparency

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Lobbying Governance

Overall Assessment	Analysis	Score
Comprehensive	Mercedes-Benz Group AG demonstrates a comprehensive governance process for climate-related lobbying, ensuring alignment with its sustainable business strategy and climate commitments. The company has published a "Mercedes-Benz Group Climate Policy Report," which transparently outlines its political positions and reviews alignment with the Paris Climate Goals, indicating a proactive approach to climate lobbying governance. The External Affairs unit, headquartered in Stuttgart and reporting to the Chairman of the Board of Management, serves as the central coordinating body for political dialogue at national and international levels. This unit ensures that advocacy positions are consistent with the company's sustainable business strategy and guidelines, supported by a global network of offices in Berlin, Brussels, Beijing, and Washington. "The Head of External Affairs, Eckart von Klaeden, is a permanent member of the Group Sustainability Committee (GSC) and supports the Committees work on political issues," highlighting clear oversight and integration of lobbying governance into broader sustainability management. The GSC, chaired by Renata Jungo Brngger, meets quarterly and manages ESG issues holistically across departments, divisions, and regions, ensuring alignment with targets, KPIs, and responsibilities. Furthermore, the company organizes meetings of the Governmental Affairs Committee several times a year to coordinate positions for political dialogue, demonstrating structured monitoring and management processes. Mercedes-Benz also emphasizes transparency by registering in multiple lobbying and transparency registers, including the EU Transparency Register and the German Lobby Register, and accrediting its political representatives. The company's advocacy activities and partnerships are explicitly stated to align with the Paris climate-protection goals, and its website provides accessible position papers on key topics such as climate protection and e-mobility. This indicates robust governance mechanisms for both direct and indirect lobbying, supported by detailed monitoring, alignment processes, and clear accountability structures. View Sources	A

Overall Assessment

Analysis

Score

Comprehensive

Mercedes-Benz Group AG demonstrates a comprehensive governance process for climate-related lobbying, ensuring alignment with its sustainable business strategy and climate commitments. The company has published a "Mercedes-Benz Group Climate Policy Report," which transparently outlines its political positions and reviews alignment with the Paris Climate Goals, indicating a proactive approach to climate lobbying governance. The External Affairs unit, headquartered in Stuttgart and reporting to the Chairman of the Board of Management, serves as the central coordinating body for political dialogue at national and international levels. This unit ensures that advocacy positions are consistent with the company's sustainable business strategy and guidelines, supported by a global network of offices in Berlin, Brussels, Beijing, and Washington. "The Head of External Affairs, Eckart von Klaeden, is a permanent member of the Group Sustainability Committee (GSC) and supports the Committees work on political issues," highlighting clear oversight and integration of lobbying governance into broader sustainability management. The GSC, chaired by Renata Jungo Brngger, meets quarterly and manages ESG issues holistically across departments, divisions, and regions, ensuring alignment with targets, KPIs, and responsibilities. Furthermore, the company organizes meetings of the Governmental Affairs Committee several times a year to coordinate positions for political dialogue, demonstrating structured monitoring and management processes. Mercedes-Benz also emphasizes transparency by registering in multiple lobbying and transparency registers, including the EU Transparency Register and the German Lobby Register, and accrediting its political representatives. The company's advocacy activities and partnerships are explicitly stated to align with the Paris climate-protection goals, and its website provides accessible position papers on key topics such as climate protection and e-mobility. This indicates robust governance mechanisms for both direct and indirect lobbying, supported by detailed monitoring, alignment processes, and clear accountability structures.

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Lobbying Transparency

Overall Assessment	Analysis	Score
Comprehensive	Mercedes-Benz Group AG provides an extensive and detailed picture of its climate-policy lobbying. The company names many concrete legislative files it is working on, including the revised EU CO₂ fleet-targets for cars and vans under the “Fit for 55” package, the forthcoming EU7 emissions standard, the EU Air Quality Directive, the EU Taxonomy and Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation, the EU Emissions Trading System and Renewable Energy Directive, U.S. EPA/NHTSA greenhouse-gas and CAFE rules, California’s Advanced Clean Cars regulation, and China’s Dual Credit Policy, among others, demonstrating full transparency on the policies it targets. It also spells out how and where it seeks to influence these measures: direct discussions with members of the European Parliament and German Bundestag, engagement with the EU Commission, “work with the Administration” and agencies such as the U.S. EPA, NHTSA and CARB, participation in public consultations with the European Commission on the Taxonomy criteria, collaboration through industry bodies such as ACEA, VDA and Auto Innovators, and technical working-group activity with CATARC in China. Finally, Mercedes-Benz is clear about the outcomes it pursues, calling for “effective CO₂ targets for new vehicle fleets,” “nationwide establishment of CO₂ pricing mechanisms,” higher renewable-energy quotas, completion of EU7 technical acts in a “practical feasible and legally certain manner,” a U.S. national GHG programme that “includes California and all other states,” and ambitious binding targets for charging and hydrogen infrastructure, while emphasising that “proposed targets are achievable if enabling framework conditions like sufficient charging infrastructure and green electricity are in place” and that “Decisive for the success of climate protection in transport is the acceptance of the new and not the prohibition of traditional technologies.” This breadth of disclosures on the policies, mechanisms and concrete objectives of its lobbying demonstrates a very high level of transparency.	A