" "

The Missing Line Item

Financial exposure hidden in environmental dependencies.

Read time: 10 mins  Added: 16/10/26

The Missing Line Item

The next material business risk may not appear in your financial statements

Businesses track the factors that shape revenue, costs and value. But many overlook the natural resources and services their operations and supply chains rely on - from water and raw materials to flood protection.

Developed with Earth Blox, The Missing Line Item introduces Nature Value at Risk (Nature VaR), a metric that translates these dependencies into potential financial exposure.

Using case studies across manufacturing, packaging and data centers, the report shows where exposure may be greatest - helping businesses prioritize resilience, risk management and investment.

Jenny Pickett

Businesses regularly measure the factors that drive financial performance. Yet many still overlook the environmental resources and services that underpin their operations, supply chains and growth. Often, they are simply taken for granted. The challenge is that businesses tend to notice these dependencies only when they come under pressure. Business leaders need to understand where those dependencies exist, how critical they are to their operations, and what could happen if resources become less reliable or unavailable.

Jenny Pickett Head of Sustainability, North America Lloyds

Farhad Merali

Businesses are starting to see that environmental issues aren’t just sustainability concerns. They can have a real impact on operating costs, supply chains, asset values and, ultimately, long-term growth. The challenge is understanding where those exposures sit within the business and assessing whether they could become financially significant over time.

Farhad Merali Head of Coverage, North America Lloyds

What’s inside the report?

Hidden dependencies, real exposure

Water, healthy soils and flood protection underpin operations, supply chains and growth - yet rarely appear in financial analysis. Discover how pressure on these resources can translate into disruption, higher costs and lost revenue.

Making nature risk measurable

Nature Value at Risk translates environmental dependencies into financial terms. See how operational, financial and geospatial data can reveal the proportion of value potentially exposed under a severe but plausible scenario.

Why location changes everything

Two sites can look identical on paper yet carry very different exposures. Explore case studies across paper, manufacturing and data centers that show how local conditions shape risk across operations and supply chains.

From insight to resilience

Knowing where exposure sits helps leaders act with confidence. Find out how Nature VaR can support risk assessment, capital planning and resilience decisions by focusing attention and investment where potential financial exposure is greatest.

Hidden dependencies, real exposure

Water, healthy soils and flood protection underpin operations, supply chains and growth - yet rarely appear in financial analysis. Discover how pressure on these resources can translate into disruption, higher costs and lost revenue.

Making nature risk measurable

Nature Value at Risk translates environmental dependencies into financial terms. See how operational, financial and geospatial data can reveal the proportion of value potentially exposed under a severe but plausible scenario.

Why location changes everything

Two sites can look identical on paper yet carry very different exposures. Explore case studies across paper, manufacturing and data centers that show how local conditions shape risk across operations and supply chains.

From insight to resilience

Knowing where exposure sits helps leaders act with confidence. Find out how Nature VaR can support risk assessment, capital planning and resilience decisions by focusing attention and investment where potential financial exposure is greatest.

Read the report (PDF, 3.3MB)
Read the report (PDF, 3.3MB)

You may also be interested in

" "

Lloyds North America

For clients in North America with strong links to the UK. See the benefits of our client-oriented approach.

North America team
" "

Climate and nature

See how we’re supporting the transition to net zero, protecting nature and building resilience for customers, businesses and communities.

Explore climate and nature
""

Powering the transition: from resilience to delivery

Strategic insights from Lloyds’ Spring Power & Renewables Roundtable, exploring trends shaping investment, development and the US energy transition.

Key trends shaping renewables


This article uses American English spelling and terminology as it was produced by our North America team.