|
December 12, 2014
Norway's Sovereign Wealth Fund Declines to Divest from Fossil Fuels
by Robert Kropp
Nongovernmental organizations criticize an expert report that recommends active ownership instead
of divestment, which was published one week after Norway's largest private pension fund announced a
policy of divestment.
SocialFunds.com --
Published in October, the 6th Sustainable and Responsible Investment Study 2014 of Eurosif, the European
Sustainable Investment Forum, noted improvements in most of the significant sustainable investment
practices on the continent. One nation singled out by the study for its robust practices was
Norway, whose largest public pension fund�the Norwegian Government Pension Fund�is a signatory to
the United Nations' Principles for Responsible
Investment (PRI).
But a report
published recently by three European nongovernmental organizations�urgewald, Framtiden i v�re
hender (Future in our hands), and Greenpeace Norway�takes the world's largest sovereign wealth fund
to task for its continuing investments in coal. The Norwegian Government Pension Fund, the report
charges, is �the Mr. Hyde to the Dr. Jekyll of Norway�s progressive climate policies.� At the end
of 2013, the report found, the Fund's holdings in the coal industry exceeded $11 billion. Over the
past two years, in fact, the Fund's coal holdings have actually increased, by well over $1 billion.
The report also pointed out that a six-member Expert Group has been tasked by the
Norwegian government with evaluating �whether the exclusion of coal and oil companies is a more
effective strategy for addressing climate issues and promoting future change than the exercise of
ownership and exertion of influence.� Civil society attendees at a public forum in June pointed
that engagement and divestment should not be considered mutually exclusive options; the real
question, the report states, �is the Norwegian government serious enough about climate change to
put the coal industry on its list of excluded activities?�
The Expert Group delivered its
70-page report to the Norwegian government earlier this month. According to a press release from urgewald, the report confirms
that �the Expert Group, the Norwegian Finance Ministry and Norges Bank all fail to recognize that
the Pension Fund's investments are helping to fuel an ongoing boom of the coal industry and to
lock-in energy and mining infrastructure that may undermine all chances of maintaining climate
stability.�
Noting that KLP, Norway's largest private pension fund, recently announced a
policy of divestment from coal-based utilities and coal mining companies, Truls Gulowsen of
Greenpeace Norway said, �It is shameful that Norway's largest private pension funds are far more
willing to take responsible action on climate change than Norway's sovereign wealth fund.�
�There is no point in setting up an Expert Group if all it does is parrot industry claims about
future demand in fossil fuels,� Heffa Sch�cking of urgewald said. �Instead of exploring different
options for divestment from the most carbon-intensive parts of the industry, the Expert Group
simply claims it would be too difficult to conceptualize consistent criteria - something we have
just done in our own study.�
�The Pension Fund is currently invested in companies
responsible for 42% of world coal production,� Arild Hermstad of the Future in our Hands said.
�Coal is easily replaceable and it is time to stop pretending that these destructive investments
don't contradict Norway's climate obligations or won't affect the future of Norwegian people.�
A final decision on divestment from coal is expected to be made by the Norwegian Parliament in
the spring.
©
SRI World Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Top
| 
