BlackRock Inc, the world’s biggest money manager, made headlines early this year when it pledged to prioritize climate change in its investments and pare down its coal holdings.
However, environmentalists say the company has failed to make good on this promise in a series of shareholder proposals at annual meetings this year.
Led by influential Wall Street player Larry Fink and overseeing about US$7.3 trillion in assets, BlackRock in January vowed to take action to address climate change and sustainable development, raising the hopes of environmentalists.
“We applauded BlackRock for its statement at the beginning of this year ... and we acknowledge that they have taken some steps in that direction,” said Ben Cushing, who leads the Sierra Club’s financial advocacy campaign. “But clearly it has not translated into fast-enough, or bold-enough action.”
Part of the skepticism comes from BlackRock’s response to shareholder proposals to require companies to take action on the environment.
SHAREHOLDER CALLS
BlackRock supported only 13 percent of the green-oriented resolutions this year, down from 20 percent last year, said Proxy Insight, which tracks global shareholder voting.
A report last month from non-governmental organization Majority Action said the New York financial giant backed only three of 36 resolutions on climate change in proxy votes of S&P 500 companies.
Although BlackRock signed on to Climate Action 100+, a global investor engagement initiative, it supported just two of 12 resolutions presented by the coalition.
BlackRock holds shares in numerous large companies, including Apple Inc, Facebook Inc and Exxon Mobil Corp, as well as ConocoPhillips and Nike Inc.
Cushing said BlackRock could make a big difference if its actions match its rhetoric.
“BlackRock is a huge contributor to the climate crisis through its financing of fossil fuels, deforestation and other climate damaging industries,” he said.
“They are one of the world’s largest shareholders in almost every publicly traded company,” Cushing said. “That gives BlackRock tremendous power and leverage to steer the behavior of corporations in the US and around the world.”
The company voted against proposals to require Chevron Corp to develop a report on the risks from petrochemical plants and to make Delta Air Lines Inc evaluate how its lobbying strategy conforms with the Paris Climate Accord, saying the firms already had taken steps to address the issue.
COMPANY’S DEFENSE
BlackRock has defended its record, saying it had taken other steps, such as voting against board nominees who are not committed to environmental issues and prodding action in meetings with company management.
“It’s worth noting that not all shareholder proposals are created equal,” it said. “Blindly supporting proposals is not a responsible approach to stewardship.”
Giulia Christianson, head of sustainable investment at the World Resources Institute, said other big investors are stepping up on the environment.
According to the report from Majority Action, investment heavyweight Pacific Investment Management Co voted in favor of all the resolutions considered essential for the environment.
The same report credited French company Amundi SA with a 78 percent record and JPMorgan Chase & Co with a 53 percent record.
BlackRock backed only 8 percent of the resolutions.
“The voting record that we’ve seen from BlackRock this year is discouraging,” Christianson said, noting an apparent “disconnect” between BlackRock’s actions and earlier statements that implied it viewed promoting sustainability as part of its fiduciary duty.
Christianson said that it makes good business sense: environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) investments have gained more legitimacy in recent years and many green-oriented companies have outperformed amid the tumult of COVID-19
“We’re seeing ESG funds make it through the current stress test of market volatility pretty well and in many cases better than their traditional index counterparts,” she said.
Anna Bhobho, a 31-year-old housewife from rural Zimbabwe, was once a silent observer in her home, excluded from financial and family decisionmaking in the deeply patriarchal society. Today, she is a driver of change in her village, thanks to an electric tricycle she owns. In many parts of rural sub-Saharan Africa, women have long been excluded from mainstream economic activities such as operating public transportation. However, three-wheelers powered by green energy are reversing that trend, offering financial opportunities and a newfound sense of importance. “My husband now looks up to me to take care of a large chunk of expenses,
SECTOR LEADER: TSMC can increase capacity by as much as 20 percent or more in the advanced node part of the foundry market by 2030, an analyst said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to lead its peers in the advanced 2-nanometer process technology, despite competition from Samsung Electronics Co and Intel Corp, TrendForce Corp analyst Joanne Chiao (喬安) said. TSMC’s sophisticated products and its large production scale are expected to allow the company to continue dominating the global 2-nanometer process market this year, Chiao said. The world’s largest contract chipmaker is scheduled to begin mass production of chips made on the 2-nanometer process in its Hsinchu fab in the second half of this year. It would also hold a ceremony on Monday next week to
TECH CLUSTER: The US company’s new office is in the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City, a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan US chip designer Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday launched an office in Tainan’s Gueiren District (歸仁), marking a significant milestone in the development of southern Taiwan’s artificial intelligence (AI) industry, the Tainan City Government said in a statement. AMD Taiwan general manager Vincent Chern (陳民皓) presided over the opening ceremony for the company’s new office at the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City (沙崙智慧綠能科學城), a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan. Facilities in the new office include an information processing center, and a research and development (R&D) center, the Tainan Economic Development Bureau said. The Ministry
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday signed a letter of intent with Alaska Gasline Development Corp (AGDC), expressing an interest to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) and invest in the latter’s Alaska LNG project, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement. Under the agreement, CPC is to participate in the project’s upstream gas investment to secure stable energy resources for Taiwan, the ministry said. The Alaska LNG project is jointly promoted by AGDC and major developer Glenfarne Group LLC, as Alaska plans to export up to 20 million tonnes of LNG annually from 2031. It involves constructing an 1,290km
RSS