At the Bucharest Business Forum, hosted by Property Forum, Răzvan Nica, CEO of Carbon Tool, highlighted the urgent need for real decarbonization in the built environment. With carbon targets tightening under EU regulations, the real estate sector must move beyond basic certifications and embrace lifecycle-based strategies built on data, transparency, and collaboration.

 

 

Lifecycle emissions: The real carbon challenge

 

While operational efficiency has long dominated the sustainability conversation, Răzvan Nica emphasized that embodied carbon, e.g. emissions from materials, construction processes, and supply chains, now accounts for more than 50% of a building’s total footprint. Tracking and reducing these emissions requires Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) and collaboration across the full project team, from suppliers to contractors.

“This is not just about energy labels”, Răzvan Nica stated. “It’s about knowing what’s behind your concrete, your steel, your logistics, and aggregating that impact over the building’s full lifecycle.”

 

 

Regulatory pressure and Scope 3 complexity

 

One of the most pressing issues discussed was the growing complexity of CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) compliance. Developers now face pressure to report Scope 3 emissions, including embodied carbon, despite the data often residing with contractors or external vendors.

“Scope 3 reporting makes embodied carbon the developer’s responsibility,” Răzvan Nica explained. “That’s a huge shift. Without a clear data framework, reporting becomes inefficient and risks falling short of compliance.”

This is precisely the gap Carbon Tool was built to address, by offering project teams a centralized, structured way to quantify, compare and reduce lifecycle emissions from design to operation.

 

 

From certification to performance

 

Traditional certifications like BREEAM and LEED helped raise awareness, but Răzvan Nica argued that the industry must now focus on measurable decarbonization outcomes, not just labels. Increasingly, tenants and investors demand carbon performance thresholds during leasing or funding discussions.

Green leases are emerging as a mechanism to align landlord and tenant goals. But for this to work, both parties must rely on transparent, comparable carbon data, and they must be willing to act on it.

 

 

Digital tools for real strategy

 

The industry is not lacking in data, Răzvan Nica noted, it’s lacking in tools to interpret and act on it. With AI-driven platforms like Carbon Tool, developers can simulate emissions scenarios, optimize material choices, and develop long-term retrofit plans that are aligned with regulatory and financial timelines.

“The future of ESG reporting is real-time, digital and performance-based,” said Nica. “We built Carbon Tool to help companies make that leap. Not just to comply, but to lead.”