COP26

Airlines’ net-zero pledges fly on fumes

1 Nov 2021

Aviation accounts for only 2.5% of global emissions and technologies to help operators decarbonise appear numerous. Yet batteries, hydrogen, biofuels and e-kerosene all have big practical challenges and are too pricey. The risk for airlines is anxious states clipping their wings.

Macquarie’s green gloss will struggle to shine

29 Oct 2021

The Australian financial powerhouse has cut its dividend and is raising A$1.5 bln in equity. Such steps often signal caution, but in this case the sensible idea is to invest, not least in renewables. With a valuation sitting at 3 times book value, however, expectations are high.

Viewsroom: Soccer, steel and the COP; Andrea Orcel

28 Oct 2021

As world leaders and corporate chieftains converge on Glasgow for the UN climate powwow, Rob Cox and George Hay talk about one European steel town's struggle to transition from hydrocarbons to a green new era. And Lisa Jucca discusses the latest on UniCredit’s M&A options.

Capital Calls: Aussie climate plan stumbles

28 Oct 2021

Concise views on global finance: The federal government won’t sign a pledge to reduce methane emissions.

Moving carbon goalposts will be a wrenching burden

27 Oct 2021

The work required to make a net-zero transition is far harder than regularly announced political targets suggest. A soccer team in Taranto, Italy, home to Europe’s largest and most notorious steel mill, offers a glimpse into the economic struggles facing cities the world over.

Xi’s green reticence is partly trade-war ploy

27 Oct 2021

China’s president seems unlikely to attend the UN climate summit in Glasgow, and the country’s updated plans to cap emissions look unimpressive. Beijing may want to extract Western concessions for more ambitious carbon targets. Its environmental cleanup will proceed regardless.

Road to COP: Sealing the deal

26 Oct 2021

Seasoned climate change lawyer Rick Saines received recognition from the French state for his role in making the 2015 Paris Agreement a landmark success. With days to go until Glasgow’s equivalent COP26, he chatted to George Hay about how this one could pan out.

Australia’s climate plans amount to giant COP-out

26 Oct 2021

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has abrogated responsibility to states for an underwhelming 2030 emissions target. His 2050 net-zero goal also sees a long future for fossil fuels and relies on untested technology. It’s reasonable to expect more from a country on the front lines.

India Insight: Climate fight goes way beyond coal

26 Oct 2021

A green agenda supports Narendra Modi’s goal to boost the nation’s self-sufficiency. India’s tycoons aim to develop and export the cheapest, solar-generated hydrogen. Private capital will help renewables power economic growth, but coal and net zero are the elephants in the room.

Breakdown: COP26 gets an ambitions downgrade

25 Oct 2021

An energy crisis and no-show from Xi Jinping are undermining next week’s critical climate gathering in Glasgow. Getting all states to set 2050 net-zero goals is a stretch. Maintaining some momentum via nearer-term pacts in areas like phasing out coal has more chance of success.

UK’s net-zero bill is less painful than it looks

20 Oct 2021

Britain’s pre-COP26 investment pledges augur ill for securing up to 60 bln pounds a year of mostly private capital to cut CO2 emissions. Yet unlike peers, it now has a solid net-zero strategy. If that wins over investors, other states may decide to offer similarly clear roadmaps.

Capital Calls: Spanx’s “velvet ghetto”

20 Oct 2021

Concise views on global finance: Blackstone’s investment in the undergarments company was closed by an all-woman team. That’s progress, but not the best kind.

Road to COP: Making companies do better

19 Oct 2021

Anne Simpson is one of the key figures in U.S. climate finance. As head of Board Responsibility at U.S. pension fund CalPERS, it’s her job to give companies a hard time if they shirk on decarbonisation. Ahead of November’s critical COP26 conference, she chatted to George Hay.

Capital Calls: Real estate distress is tricky call

15 Oct 2021

Concise views on global finance: Barry Sternlicht’s Starwood Capital has raised a $10 bln fund to buy struggling buildings. With the pandemic's long-term effects unclear, the key will be avoiding those destined to remain empty.

Green clouds blow forcefully into Canberra

15 Oct 2021

Miner South32 is the latest Aussie company to bow to climate-conscious shareholders. Its carbon-friendly deal coincides with central banker Guy Debelle warning that overseas investors may dump assets over the country’s net-zero dithering. Financiers may cast the deciding vote.

Green transition needs a wider focus than oil cuts

13 Oct 2021

Fossil fuel investment has fallen to levels that would limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the IEA says. Yet measures to hike green energy and curb demand are just as important, and lagging. Unless states act, high energy prices risk becoming an ongoing headache.

Capital Calls: Australia’s climate change

12 Oct 2021

Concise views on global finance: Prime Minister Scott Morrison may yet unveil a national emissions-reduction plan for COP26 after winning cover from a major business group, the biggest state, and the Murdoch press.

Road to COP: Mark Carney on finance’s climate role

12 Oct 2021

The UN climate envoy is enlisting banks, asset managers, insurers and others in wide efforts to keep global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees. He tells Rob Cox what to expect from the industry at Glasgow, how multilateral development banks need to “up their ambition” and more.

Time for bank holdouts to join Carney’s green club

8 Oct 2021

Most big western lenders have joined the ex-BoE boss’s GFANZ group pledging tough climate targets. Yet those run by Jamie Dimon, Charlie Scharf, Andrea Orcel and David Solomon have yet to do so. As with taking state capital in 2008, taking part makes more sense than holding out.

Mining magnate is Greta’s unlikely kindred spirit

6 Oct 2021

Fortescue boss Andrew Forrest goes beyond the climate activist’s “blah blah blah” net-zero dismissal by calling such targets “a lie”. He’s basically right, but his own company clings to the carbon trope. The ambition on green hydrogen and Scope 3 targets, however, is welcome.