Sustainability

UK climate goals could use a short-term stick

20 Apr 2021

PM Boris Johnson has committed to hit tougher CO2 emissions targets by 2035. That’s good, but the most important decade for tackling climate change is the 2020s. A better way to spur action would be to make it politically or legally difficult to duck shorter-term carbon goals.

Anglo American tests shareholders’ ESG bona fides

8 Apr 2021

The miner is giving investors one share in its spun-off thermal coal unit for every 10 already held. The commodity’s kryptonite status means many European institutions will want to get rid of them for the same reason as Anglo. But rising coal prices may turn some heads.

Who wants to be an electric-car billionaire?

8 Apr 2021

In China, who doesn’t may be the better question. Dishwasher maker Haier, property developer Evergrande and smartphone maker Xiaomi are piling into the over-invested sector. They may disrupt the industry; they will certainly accelerate the coming bloodbath.

Europe’s greenwash-slayer becomes Trojan Horse

30 Mar 2021

The EU has proposed classifying natural gas as sustainable. Its taxonomy, which differentiates green assets from the rest, is likely to be watered down further. Such an imperfect guide risks leading investors astray and delaying progress towards decarbonising the economy.

ESG wave crashes into Volkswagen’s narrow straits

26 Mar 2021

U.S. eco-investors have pushed ordinary shares in the $153 bln automaker way above equal preference stock after CEO Herbert Diess upgraded battery car plans. Investors’ need for voting rights plus VW’s small free-float may explain why. But the lack of clarity invites a snapback.

Carbon markets have a Goldilocks problem

24 Mar 2021

Europe’s lowball carbon prices used to be a joke. Since the EU acted to clear a permit glut, they’ve spiked above 40 euros a tonne to a level just right to drive CO2 cuts. The challenge is to stop a political backlash if financial interlopers ramp prices too far, too quickly.

Guest view: The EU is tarnishing its green jewel

23 Mar 2021

The European Union’s Taxonomy is supposed to mean stakeholders can differentiate between sustainable investments and carbon-heavy ones. A new plan to treat gas as green is a huge mistake, argues Sandrine Dixson-Declève. It turns a potential global template into a paper tiger.

Banks’ climate pledges suffer from water scarcity

22 Mar 2021

It barely gets a mention in Wall Street’s net-zero goals. Yet water accounts for a good slug of carbon emissions and 90% of global warming-related crises from U.S. droughts to Australia’s floods. Banks can speed toward sustainable finance by paying attention to the resource.

Axa delivers kick up derrière to green investing

15 Mar 2021

The French group will no longer insure RWE or invest in its shares due to its coal exposure. It’s harsh on the German utility, which also has extensive wind and solar power assets. But it may be a wakeup call for other big companies with less impressive decarbonisation plans.

Antipodean wind deal harnesses three power sources

15 Mar 2021

Two companies divvying up New Zealand’s Tilt Renewables for $2.1 bln are paying a 99% premium and 96 times earnings. The scarcity of green assets is one driver. A fragmented market is another. The buyers need their governments to fulfil clean energy pledges to justify the price.

South Africa enters greener bond-market crosshairs

11 Mar 2021

With 90% of its power coming from coal, the Rainbow Nation is one of the worst CO2 emitters. Mining’s political heft also means foot-dragging on climate policy. With big external funding needs, the kick from bond investors when they flick the green switch will hurt hardest.

Review: The human response to a man-made disaster

5 Mar 2021

Mankind’s impact on the planet is irreversible, Elizabeth Kolbert writes in “Under a White Sky”. She focuses on people trying to limit the damage, whether by breeding hardy coral or reflecting the sun. Wilfully shaping nature raises new dilemmas. But we may have no choice.

UK $3 bln power LBO relies on big green reboot

5 Mar 2021

Aggreko, which rents out generators, agreed a deal with private equity buyers TDR and I Squared Capital. The company suffered from virus-hit event cancellations, and needs investment to ditch dirty diesel units. A green makeover may deliver a higher valuation, and juicy returns.

Japan and Oz utility reflect on climate sins

5 Mar 2021

A fund is suing Tokyo for backtracking on promised renewable-energy incentives. Australian electricity provider AGL just took a $1.5 bln hit on pricey long-term wind contracts. Each would have been better off taking the other’s approach.

Xi’s green campaign will restructure state sector

3 Mar 2021

Shares in energy champions like Sinopec are rallying as they announce plans to serve Beijing’s carbon-neutral push. State firms generate 4.5% of global GDP; cleaning them would pay big dividends. But smaller players can’t pivot so easily. Green progress means dirty defaults.

Sustainable debt may be too popular for own good

2 Mar 2021

Investors are piling into bonds sold by companies such as H&M or Tesco which punish issuers for missing environmental targets. Demand has been such that the funding is now dirt-cheap. That could distort the price of the securities, and their intended effect.

Guest view: 2021 is tipping point to hit net zero

25 Feb 2021

Economic crises often see innovation budgets cut. With energy efficiency trends worsening governments must hold the line, urge IRENA’s Francesco La Camera and the IEA’s Fatih Birol. A big chunk of decarbonisation will come from technologies that are still at the prototype phase.

Indian renewables SPAC sets temperate tone

24 Feb 2021

Goldman-backed ReNew Power is listing in New York via a blank-cheque firm. It’s a decent bet on India’s pivot to clean energy, with a structure and valuation that factor in the industry’s flaky customers. Future Asian SPAC deals in waiting may not be so well grounded.

Review: Bill Gates engineers climate risk clarity

19 Feb 2021

In “How to Avoid a Climate Disaster” the Microsoft founder argues states should throw money at climate change research. Technology will indeed be critical in figuring out how to eliminate carbon emissions. But his book’s main quality is to define the challenge in a graspable way.

BlackRock can push harder on climate change

17 Feb 2021

The $9 trillion asset manager will require heavy polluters to disclose their full carbon dioxide footprints and set short-term targets to cut emissions. That’s an improvement. But until BlackRock leans on index providers to up their game too, it’s not deploying all its heft.