Asset managers from around the world, including the American BlackRock, have more than 400,000 million dollars (more than 360,000 million euros) of investments in hydrocarbon producers, in contradiction with their climate commitments, denounces the NGO Carbon Tracker in a study published this Friday.
The authors analyze the investments of financial firms that are among the shareholders of 15 large private companies in the hydrocarbons sector such as the British BP, the American ExxonMobil or the French Totalenergies.
None of these fossil fuel giants is “aligned” with the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial times, according to Carbon Tracker, which references the world’s most ambitious target, the Accord. of Paris in 2015.
French Amundi set
Among the managers, several American groups stand out for their large investments in oil and gas companies, such as the giant BlackRock (with an oil and gas asset value of 116,000 million in 2022).
Others like the French Amundi (12,000 million) are also signed up. Contacted by AFP, Amundi, who managed 1,934 million euros on March 31, 2023, defended himself by saying that his role as an investor was “also to support the transition of the economy (…) towards a more sustainable and low-carbon economy “. and inclusive”, which implies “accelerating the transition of the energy sector” by pushing them towards an “ambitious climate strategy”.
The authors note that many of them have nonetheless officially engaged on the climate front, notably by joining the “Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative” (NZAM).
The latter sets itself the goal of “supporting the goal of zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or earlier, in line with efforts to limit global warming to 1.5°C.” It includes BlackRock, JPMorgan, UBS, Amundi, BNP Paribas, and even Lazard.
Growing exposure to the fossil fuel sector
According to Carbon Tracker, the 25 NZAM member financial groups with the largest exposure to the hydrocarbons sector add up to nearly $417 billion in investments in the oil and gas sector.
Carbon Tracker points out that many of them have even increased their exposure to the fossil sector between 2021 and 2022, whose profits have been inflated for more than a year by the war in Ukraine.
Managers who are members of the NZAM initiative “signal to the market that they will invest in line with the Paris agreement goal of limiting warming to 1.5°C,” says Maeve O’Connor, author of the report.
But “if you invest in companies in the oil and gas sector that are not aligned with this goal, you are risking your reputation with climate-conscious asset owners,” he warns.
“Other investors may also be concerned about their exposure to risks associated with the energy transition,” he adds, as some fossil assets risk losing value with the rise of other forms of cleaner energy. .
Contacted by AFP, the NZAM initiative said it “shares Carbon Tracker’s vision that the oil and gas sector must decarbonise rapidly to address the urgency of the climate crisis.”
Source: BFM TV
