(Bloomberg) – Norwegian life insurer Storebrand ASA has lifted climate policy, leading to oil giants Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. and accelerate a complete disinvestment of coal.
The move by the Oslo-listed company, which manages about $ 91 billion, is another illustration of how investors are adapting to the risks of climate change, putting pressure on fossil fuel producers.
Storebrand has sold its holdings in Exxon and Chevron, chemical giant BASF SE and miner Rio Tinto Group for its lobbying efforts against the Paris Agreement and climate regulation, it said in a statement. It is also stopping ConocoPhillips and Husky Energy Inc because of their investments in polluting oil sands.
The lobby’s assessment is based on the official positions of the companies, the organizations of which they are members and how much money they have invested in climate work, said Jan Erik Saugestad, head of Storebrand Asset Management, in an interview. Although Exxon and Chevron have joined the global oil and gas climate initiative, they have not set solid targets for emissions reductions, unlike European competitors.
Exxon and Chevron said in separate statements that they support the goals of the Paris Agreement and invest in technology to reduce emissions. Exxon “is facing the double challenge of meeting the growing energy demand and minimizing environmental impact and the risks of climate change,” spokeswoman Casey Norton said in an email.
Chevron has been “carefully considered” over a recent vote by shareholders to increase revelation about climate lobby, spokesman Sean Comey said in an email. The company is not always aligned with third-party organizations it works with “but it is important for us to be part of conversations about challenging issues where there are multiple points of view.”
More oil destinations could follow, Saugestad said. European oil companies such as BP Plc, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and the Norwegian own Equinor ASA can not “easily save and continue with business as usual,” he said.
The new policy also bans companies that receive more than 5% of their revenue coal, a goal that Storebrand previously planned to achieve by 2026.
Small distribution
Damages as a result of the new policy were completed this year, Saugestad said, refusing to be more specific. At a total of $ 47 million, almost half related to Exxon and Chevron alone, they represent a small portion of Storebrand’s assets.
“The most important thing for us is to send a clear signal that we expect the companies to work with us,” Saugestad said. “In a global context, we are quite a small player. But we are also in a leading global position on sustainable investment. ”
Storebrand has been at the forefront of a campaign to put pressure on Brazil to protect the Amazon forest, raising funds with more than $ 4.6 trillion in assets. It has also removed all oil investments from its Swedish unit.
(Updates with company comments in fifth paragraph.)
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