A giant excavator loads dumpers with a fresh load of tar sands at the Syncrude open pit oil excavation mine in Fort McMurray. The top soil is removed to give access to the controversial tar sands. The sand goes through a processing plant to extract usable oil. Photo Credit: Orjan F. Ellingvag/Getty Images
Environment United KingdomUK’s Biggest Pension Fund Pulls Money out of Carbon Industries, Shifts to Renewables
The government-backed National Employment Savings Trust (NEST), UK’s biggest pension fund, intends to stop investing in companies involved in coal mining, oil from tar sands and arctic drilling.
“Just like coronavirus, climate change poses serious risks to both our savers and their investments,” says Mark Fawcett, the fund’s chief investment officer. “As the world’s economy slowly recovers from coronavirus, we want to ensure this recovery is a green one. We have a unique opportunity to support sustainable growth and transition towards a low-carbon economy.”
Consequently, NEST will look towards investing more money in renewable energy infrastructure whilst remaining interested in oil companies transitioning from carbon-based fuel to green energy. “We hope it will encourage other pension schemes to up their ambition,” says Lauren Peacock of ShareAction.
