Investors with $4 trln assets aim to tackle Asian firms on climate change goals By Reuters

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – A bunch of six traders with a mixed $4 trillion of property below administration, together with Constancy Worldwide, mentioned on Wednesday it goals to step up engagement with large Asian firms like banks and power producers to make sure they’ve a street map to satisfy local weather change targets.

Preliminary engagement will give attention to carbon threat and coal at banks and coal-exposed energy firms, the group of traders, facilitated by Singapore-based advisor Asia Analysis & Engagement (ARE), mentioned in an announcement.

The transfer comes as traders turn out to be extra energetic within the discipline of environmental, social and company (ESG) governance, serving to to form companies’ local weather commitments to raised handle that threat for his or her shoppers. ESG-related steps they’ve taken embody backing activist shareholder resolutions and voting on board members and remuneration.

At Royal Dutch Shell (LON: (NYSE:).L)’s annual shareholder assembly in Could, practically a 3rd of shareholders backed a decision filed by an activist group, however rejected by the board, that wishes the corporate to set short- and medium-term targets to chop absolute emissions.

The six traders embody BMO World Asset Administration EMEA, Constancy Worldwide, Dutch pension fund PGGM, Britain-based Native Authority Pension Fund Discussion board (LAPFF), Aviva (LON:) Traders and Authorized & Basic Funding Administration.

“Over the previous yr we’ve seen encouraging developments in sustainability-related enterprise practices and insurance policies, equivalent to a raft of web zero bulletins,” Mirza Baig, world head of ESG investments at Aviva Traders, mentioned within the assertion.

“In actuality, there’s nonetheless a stark mismatch between the place we’re immediately and what’s required to make sure that the aims of the Paris Settlement (on local weather change objectives) are met,” he mentioned. “There’s a big alternative for Asian firms to take the lead in tackling the local weather emergency.”

The group has already begun engagement with firms together with China energy companies Huaneng and Huadian. Huaneng and Huadian didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.

The investor group will encourage firms equivalent to banks to decide to concrete actions like exiting from financing essentially the most carbon-intensive fossil fuels, and stopping financing fossil-fuel enlargement and associated infrastructure.

Measures would additionally embody encouraging Asian energy utilities to set out plans to convey their companies in keeping with Paris Settlement targets.