Aviva withdraws from companies that do not act on the climate: FT

Photographer: Hollie Adams / Bloomberg

Aviva Investors, one of Britain’s leading asset managers, will divest from oil, gas, mining and utility companies that fall short of its climate change expectations.

The London-based investor has written to the companies, calling on them to set targets for net zero emissions and incorporate climate risks into their strategy, including their capital spending plans, The Financial Times reported, citing director of investments for equities David Cumming.

Cumming told the newspaper that climate change poses a huge risk to financial markets and is a major disruptor. He said divestment was the last thing Aviva wanted to do but “we will”.

Aviva will divest in both its equity and credit portfolio if companies fail to meet expectations over the next one to three years, he said. Aviva declined to name the companies it targets.

Aviva Investors manages £ 355 billion ($ 486 billion) and has stakes in 30 of the world’s largest oil, gas, mining and utility companies, according to the Financial Times. Cumming said he expected other asset managers to increasingly consider divestment as a response to companies’ efforts on climate change.