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March 14 (Reuters) – BNP Paribas Asset Management, the investment management division of the French bank, will stop investing in companies that derive more than 10% of their revenue from thermal coal.
The exclusion of these companies producing thermal coal and producing electricity from coal was announced Thursday and will come into force early next year as part of the fund's strategy aimed at to reduce the economic risk in its portfolios, coal becoming uncompetitive as fuel. generation.
Disinvestment in fossil fuels has increased in recent years as pension funds, sovereign wealth funds and universities have sold oil, gas and coal stocks, particularly after the signing of the global agreement. on climate change in 195 countries in Paris, aimed at phasing out the use of fossil fuels in this century.
The Norwegian $ 1 trillion sovereign fund, the largest in the world, can not invest in companies that derive more than 30% of its coal revenues. He announced last week that he would sell his stakes in oil and gas exploration and production companies.
BNP Paribas Asset Management, which was managing nearly € 400 billion in badets at the end of last year, said it would exclude companies that derive more than 10% of their revenues from thermal coal mining. and / or represent 1% or more of total world production.
The carbon-intensive generators – the level of carbon emissions per unit of economic growth – above the global average for 2017 of 491 g of carbon dioxide per kilowatt hour (CO2 / kWh) will also be excluded, he added.
To keep global warming within safe limits, the International Energy Agency said the carbon intensity of power plants is expected to drop to 327g of CO2 / kWh by 2025.
"From an investment point of view, the prospects for the coal industry seem increasingly uncertain as more carbon-intensive fuel sources, especially renewables, become more and more important. in addition to competitive, "said Mark Lewis, Global Head of Sustainability Research at BNP Paribas Asset Management.
The company said it would consider exceptions for miners and electricity producers who "credibly commit" to reduce their coal-related activities to levels consistent with the global compact on the climate of 2015.
However, these exceptions will depend on the companies' strategies for disposal of coal badets or acquisition of lower carbon production capacity. They would be granted on a half-yearly basis and business expectations would be in line within two years. (1 USD = 0.8838 euros)
(Report by Nina Chestney edited by David Goodman)
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