Retirement
Super fund pushes for net zero by 2030
An education and community sector fund has pledged to its members to become carbon neutral by the end of the decade, with members tipped to benefit from greater returns.
Super fund pushes for net zero by 2030
An education and community sector fund has pledged to its members to become carbon neutral by the end of the decade, with members tipped to benefit from greater returns.
While a number of Australian superannuation funds including Aware Super, Hesta and Australian Super have committed to being carbon neutral by 2050, NGS Super said it will look to reduce its carbon footprint two decades earlier.
NGS Super has promised its $12.8 billion in funds under management will be carbon neutral by 2030, highlighting the 2050 target misaligned with the time frames the scientific community has given in relation to stemming the impacts of climate change.
“Our target of being carbon neutral by 2030 is the next step in integrating responsible investment for better returns for our members,” NGS Super chief investment officer Ben Squires said.
“We believe integrating ESG and responsible investment principles is vital to managing risk within our investment portfolio and providing our members with better risk-adjusted returns.”
The superannuation funds pointed out that as the custodians of nearly $3 trillion in assets, superannuation funds have a responsibility to members, believing that if climate change is not acknowledged in investment portfolios with more immediate action, this quickly shifting landscape will present further risk to the retirement savings of millions of Australians.
They said that “divestment of some companies and stocks will be necessary to achieve our 2030 target, but first and foremost, we will use engagement to effect change, as well as seeking out positive investments in companies and businesses that are actively looking to transition to the low-carbon economy. We have already started that journey.”
“Our focus will be on carbon reduction and investing in carbon-positive assets or companies in areas such as clean energy infrastructure (wind and solar projects), storage infrastructure, or grid technology,” Mr Squires said.
“We’ll access these opportunities in several ways, including investing in infrastructure or private equity funds, direct project-level investment, securitised bonds or equity, investing in green buildings, or funding the balance sheets of corporate developers in both debt and equity.”
For the purposes of this transition, carbon neutral is defined in terms of carbon dioxide (CO2). CO2 is by far the largest contributor to greenhouse gases — in 2018, approximately 81 per cent of the total greenhouse gases emitted were carbon dioxide, hence a “carbon neutral” goal as opposed to a “net zero emissions” goal.
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