On the go: The Brunel Pension Partnership, composed of 10 Local Government Pension Schemes with around £30bn in assets under management, has reduced the carbon intensity of all its active portfolios and all but one of its index-tracking portfolios by at least 7 per cent compared with its 2019 baseline.
The UK pension pool outlined the reduction in one of three reports it published that highlight the progress and ambitions across several responsible investment themes, in particular climate change.
In its ‘2021 Responsible investment and stewardship outcomes’ report, Brunel reported it has increased the percentage of women on boards of companies within its active portfolios. It also highlighted its engagement on 3,101 issues at 881 companies, achieving 1,050 milestones, and its engagement with banks on fossil fuel lending to change practices.
Laura Chappell, chief executive at Brunel, said the report enabled the pool “to think about where we could be more effective and how we need to develop our thinking and our approach”.
In its inaugural ‘Climate change action plan report’, which is in line with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures recommendations, Brunel noted that it has now committed to be net-zero by 2050 and is making “excellent progress against this goal”.
“Our ambition is to provide leadership on climate investing and, through that leadership, to help transform the industry to make it fit for a net-zero world,” said Faith Ward, chief responsible investment officer at Brunel.
“We all know how urgent the problem is and how much finance needs to be part of the solution. Brunel is a strong advocate for global mandatory disclosure to TCFD, and we hope this report demonstrates that commitment,” she added.
Brunel’s ‘Carbon metrics report’, which takes a close look at the carbon exposure all of the fund’s active holdings, shows that the carbon intensity of the fund’s Aggregate Portfolio is 22 per cent more efficient than its custom benchmark, and that all Brunel portfolios have lower carbon intensities than their respective benchmarks.
Laura Hobbs, responsible investment manager at Brunel, said: “To outdo our benchmark so significantly is a major achievement and proof of the direction of travel. What always matters most, however, is what happens next.”
This article originally appeared on Mandatewire.com
