Clean Creatives’ F-List 2025 exposes ad industry’s ties with fossil fuels

New Delhi: Clean Creatives has released its latest F-List 2025, a database revealing the scale at which advertising and PR agencies continue to work with fossil fuel companies. 

The findings show that despite global commitments to sustainability, many of the world’s leading agencies still maintain contracts with oil, gas, and coal giants, raising questions of credibility, financial risk, and reputational damage.

The report names 709 agencies worldwide that held 1,217 contracts with fossil fuel clients between 2024 and 2025. 

Even contracts marked as completed were listed if they were active during this period. This transparency initiative aims to make visible the links that often remain hidden behind glossy campaigns and sustainability pledges.

Big agencies, big exposure

Among the firms highlighted, Edelman emerges with the highest exposure, working for clients such as Shell, Chevron, and ADNOC. Holding groups like Omnicom, WPP, Publicis, Havas, Dentsu, and Stagwell also appear prominently, with Omnicom alone jumping from 74 fossil fuel contracts in 2024 to 120 this year.

Clean Creatives’ FFIRE index estimates that fossil fuel contracts make up 5.64% of Edelman’s revenue, the highest among agencies tracked. In comparison, the share is significantly lower for the big holding groups: WPP at 0.68%, Omnicom at 0.55%, Havas at 0.38%, Stagwell at 0.28%, Publicis at 0.22%, and Dentsu at 0.15%. This highlights Edelman’s outsized reliance on fossil fuel clients compared to its peers.

WPP has dozens of contracts spread across its agencies, though its fossil fuel revenue share is under 1%. Omnicom, however, has seen a sharp increase, rising to 120 contracts in 2025, making it the holding group with the most fossil fuel relationships. Publicis and Havas continue to maintain select accounts with European oil majors, while Dentsu and Stagwell show relatively smaller but notable exposure.

On the client side, the most heavily represented fossil fuel companies are Shell (69 contracts), BP (50), TotalEnergies (42), and ExxonMobil (36). These relationships demonstrate how multiple agencies often work with the same corporations, amplifying fossil fuel narratives across markets.

FFIRE Index and why it matters

For the first time, Clean Creatives has introduced the Fossil Fuel Income Risk Exposure (FFIRE) index. This tool estimates the share of agency revenues tied to fossil fuel contracts and highlights how financially dependent certain firms remain on these industries.

The FFIRE score suggests long-term business risk: as global investment flows increasingly toward clean energy and governments tighten rules on climate communication, agencies heavily reliant on fossil fuel clients could find their revenues and reputations under threat.

The risks for agencies

The report outlines three major risks for agencies on the F-List:

1. Reputation: Younger talent and climate-conscious clients may avoid agencies associated with fossil fuel clients, undermining brand credibility.
   
   
2. Regulation: With stricter scrutiny on greenwashing and environmental claims, agencies could face legal or compliance challenges for the campaigns they produce.
   
   
3. Revenue: Heavy reliance on fossil fuel clients exposes agencies to financial instability as investment in renewables surpasses fossil energy globally.
   
   

Indeed, the International Energy Agency estimates global clean energy investments in 2025 will hit US$2.2 trillion, more than double that for fossil fuels.

While the F-List is global in scope, its findings carry significant implications for India’s advertising industry. Indian agencies, particularly those aligned with global networks, face rising scrutiny from both clients and employees. At a time when Indian conglomerates like Reliance and Adani continue to expand fossil fuel operations alongside renewable investments, agencies could be forced to disclose more transparently where their revenue comes from.

In a market where sustainability storytelling is rapidly gaining traction with brands, agencies tied too closely to fossil fuel narratives may risk losing pitches to rivals positioning themselves as “green-clean” creative partners. Moreover, regulators in India are also tightening oversight of misleading environmental claims, making the space riskier for agencies promoting fossil clients under a greenwashed narrative.

The F-List 2025 makes one thing clear: fossil fuel ties are no longer just a matter of client preference, but of business survival. Agencies that ignore this pressure risk alienating employees, clients, and regulators. Those that adapt quickly — by divesting fossil fuel accounts and building expertise in clean energy communication — may gain an edge in winning global mandates.

For India, the report should serve as a wake-up call. Agencies here are at a crossroads: align with fossil-heavy conglomerates for short-term gains or pivot toward clean energy narratives to secure long-term trust. With climate accountability becoming a global benchmark for reputation and growth, the future of Indian advertising could well depend on which side of the F-List it lands on.