ESG spotlight: A roundup of the latest news on environmental, social and governance initiatives, including the Pension Insurance Corporation investing in a social housing provider, and the Brunel Pension Partnership highlighting biodiversity as a priority following a review of its responsible investment strategy.
PIC to finance Surrey and Sussex housing
The £51.1bn Pension Insurance Corporation has completed a £130mn debt investment with Raven Housing Trust to finance the development of houses across Surrey and Sussex. The investment will be used to develop 630 homes by 2026, 58 per cent of which will be for social or affordable rent and 30 per cent for shared ownership accommodation. The PIC was chosen as sole lender following a full market tender due to its flexibility on maturity and deferral capabilities. The transaction includes a range of maturities that span more than 30 years and the maturity profile has been tailored to match the PIC’s pension liabilities in years where it is difficult to source cash flows in the public bond markets. The debt is secured on housing assets and uses a deferred drawdown structure, reducing the cost of carry for the borrower. The PIC has invested £3.3bn in social housing across the UK since 2012.
This article originally appeared on MandateWire.com
Brunel to prioritise biodiversity
The £38bn Brunel Pension Partnership, which handles assets of 10 UK local government partner pension funds, has highlighted biodiversity as a priority theme following a review of its 2021 responsible investment themes. In its recently published 2022 responsible investment and stewardship outcomes report, the pension pool identifies biodiversity as a “distinct priority area” for its broader responsible investment mandate. Previously, biodiversity had been a sub-theme captured under “supply chain management”. The new focus on biodiversity commits the pool, its managers and companies to integrate biodiversity into responsible investment practices and data gathering. According to the pension pool, the biodiversity problem is an investment risk and has been identified for its planetary and financial urgency. However, the complexity of the issue, coupled with the lack of standardised data, make progress difficult. Furthermore, Brunel will publish an updated climate policy in 2023, which will include additional objectives and targets on portfolio decarbonisation, company alignment, climate solutions and climate stewardship, in line with the Net Zero Investment Framework guidance on best practice.
This article originally appeared on MandateWire.com
