Here we list the buzzes and profiles that have been most viewed in the last 90 days.
For full details and rankings of which firms and individuals are most effectively developing their online profile in sustainable investment and corporate governance engagement on SRI-CONNECT, see Our reach; your opportunity.
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Most read research buzzes
(895) Utilities Policy: Do ESG factors improve utilities corporate efficiency and reduce the risk perceived by credit lending institutions? An empirical analysis
Utilities Policy: Do ESG factors improve utilities corporate efficiency and reduce the risk perceived by credit lending institutions? An empirical analysis
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0957178723000322)
Abstract
In a changed scenario, characterized by great attention to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors, few industries feel the pressure more than utilities.
The paper investigates, by employing a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model, whether including ESG factors increases the efficiency of utilities companies and whether banks, by considering ESG ratings when selecting utilities companies, succeed in optimizing their portfolio.
Our findings signal that ESG factors neither improve utilities efficiency nor constitute a useful complementary criterion for credit lending managers, provide useful suggestions for managers, regulators and academics.
(881) ABB: Sustainable investment roadshow (15 May)
ABB: Sustainable investment roadshow (15 May)
(https://global.abb/group/en/sustainability/reports)
InterAxS Global is pleased to be organising a roadshow for ABB (Asea Brown Boveri) to update investors on its sustainability strategy and practices.
'As a technology leader in electrification and automation, ABB is at the core of accelerating the energy transition. The company aims to enable a low-carbon society, preserve resources, and promote social progress for a net-zero future. Their ‘Setting New Standards in Sustainability’ report was recently released, alongside a new Sustainability disclosure dashboard.
- Date & time: Wednesday 15 May
- Format: Virtual meetings (1-on-1s and small group meetings) between 09:00 and 16:15 (BST)
- Company participants: Anke Hampel - Global Head of Sustainability & Ann-Sofie Nordh - Head of Investor Relations'
Institutional investors who would like to meet with the company should contact
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Other
A briefing webinar for ESG ratings agency analysts will also be held on 15 May - Details here
(761) Sustainable Fitch: Transition Assessments Flag Hurdles for Energy Companies
Sustainable Fitch: Transition Assessments Flag Hurdles for Energy Companies
- The twelve energy companies Sustainable Fitch has evaluated using our Transition Assessment (TA) methodology have, to date, made limited progress towards net zero.
- 42% of them received the second-lowest grade (brown), while just a quarter of companies received an ‘olive’ or greener grade indicating more progress and higher ambition.
- Based on reported data, the companies are roughly evenly split between those with rising and falling Scope 3 emissions. However, few companies reported data across all relevant Scope 3 categories, making it challenging to draw firm conclusions.
- Targets are also patchy, in some cases only applying to certain parts of the company.
- For most of the companies we assessed, long-terms pledges to transition to net zero have yet to translate into concrete steps to shift energy companies’ business mixes away from fossil fuels. Just one oil & gas company we assessed commits to materially decreasing upstream hydrocarbon production.
(726) ISS ESG: 2024 Global Outlook Report: Key ESG Risks and Opportunities for Investors
ISS ESG: 2024 Global Outlook Report: Key ESG Risks and Opportunities for Investors
ISS ESG: 2024 Global Outlook Report Identifies Key ESG Risks and Opportunities for Investors
NEW YORK (January 30, 2024) — ISS ESG, the sustainable investment arm of ISS STOXX, today released its annual global outlook report, Actionable Insights: Top ESG Themes in 2024, to kick off its ESG Themes and Trends 2024 thought-leadership series. The new report draws on comprehensive ISS ESG data, with research and insights from ISS ESG’s financial research and sector leads, climate specialists, and regulatory experts to help investors identify key ESG risks and opportunities likely to impact their portfolios in 2024.
Ten of the key global trends identified by ISS ESG that sustainable investors will likely be focusing on through 2024 include:
- The European Union (EU) has adopted regulation that will, by the end of 2024, require some commodities and products that enter the European market to be deforestation free. This regulation may encourage heightened awareness of the economic and environmental impacts of land-use change and portfolios’ exposure to nature-related risks.
- Rising demand for critical minerals as inputs for renewable energy is shaping mergers and acquisitions within the mining sector and encouraging public efforts to secure access to these minerals. Mining companies also face the challenge of decarbonizing their extraction activities.
- Industrial sector companies generally perform poorly on the management of environmental matters in their supply chains. Nevertheless, companies may improve their supply-chain data disclosures in 2024, encouraged by the Recommendations of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD).
- Digital health technology is dramatically expanding, a trend that creates both investment opportunities and cybersecurity and privacy risks. Investors may accordingly want to advocate that companies tighten their information security management systems and practices in the future.
- Companies have been rapidly integrating generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) into their products and services, a process that might bring future liabilities. Although AI-related regulation is still developing, existing privacy and property laws already provide a foundation for potential liability.
- In an uncertain macroeconomic environment, in which volatility, inflation, interest rates, and geopolitical risks are expected to remain elevated, alternative investments can provide investors with an idiosyncratic opportunity to generate alpha and to actively consider the Net Zero transition.
- The complexity of climate change impacts, the global regulatory push for standardized climate-related disclosures, and the diversity of investment preferences mean that financial institutions will continue to demand climate scenario analysis tools. Wider adoption of climate scenario analysis means the methodology behind such analysis is likely to become more refined.
- National and international regulations and standards have targeted PFAS chemicals because of these chemicals’ health effects. The EU may ban the chemicals by 2027, for example. Risks from regulation, lawsuits, and controversies may foster heightened investor concern about companies’ involvement in PFAS and exploration of alternatives to the chemicals.
- Investors face the challenge of identifying which firms have superior ESG performance and linking that performance to the firms’ financial performance. ISS ESG offers ESGF, a rating that considers a firm’s ESG risks and opportunities along with its Financial Quality measured over time. ESGF can help investors navigate the volatile market likely in 2024.
- Ensuring investors have sufficient information to evaluate ESG issues accurately is a top priority for global financial regulators. A diversity of regulatory approaches, however, raises the possibility of fragmentation among regulatory regimes, with disclosure standards lacking interoperability and compatibility. Although leading reporting standards developed by the International Sustainability Standards Board, the European Commission, and EFRAG became more aligned in 2023, sustainability reporting will likely remain fragmented in the future.
Bonnie Saynay, Global Head of ESG Investor Research at ISS ESG, said: “Regulation, technology, natural capital, and climate change are among the major forces likely to shape the ESG investment landscape in 2024. Environmental concerns as well as the risks and opportunities raised by emerging and evolving technologies such as AI have encouraged regulatory and other legal responses. All these factors, combined, form the context for companies and investors in 2024.”Saynay added: “Our new report demonstrates how ISS ESG’s proprietary data and research team, with significant capital markets experience and sectoral expertise, help support investors in evaluating and prioritizing evolving ESG risks and investment opportunities.”
To download a copy of the full report, please click here.
About ISS ESG
ISS ESG solutions enable investors to develop and integrate sustainable investing policies and practices, engage on sustainable investment issues, and monitor portfolio company practices through screening solutions. ISS ESG also provides climate data, analytics, and advisory services to help financial market participants understand, measure, and act on climate-related risks across all asset classes. In addition, ESG solutions cover corporate and country ESG research and ratings enabling its clients to identify material social and environmental risks and opportunities. For more information, please visit us at: www.iss-esg.comAbout ISS STOXX
ISS STOXX GmbH, through its group companies, is a leading provider of comprehensive and data-centric research and technology solutions that help capital market participants identify investment opportunities, detect qualitative and quantitative portfolio company risks, and meet evolving regulatory requirements. With roots dating back to 1985, we today deliver world-class benchmark and custom indices across asset classes and geographies and serve as a premier source of independent corporate governance, sustainability, cyber risk, and fund intelligence research, data, and related offerings. Our products and services give clients the scale and leverage they need to grow their business more effectively and efficiently. ISS STOXX, which is majority owned by Deutsche Börse Group, is comprised of more than 3,400 professionals operating across 33 global locations in 19 countries. Its approximately 6,400 clients include many of the world’s leading institutional investors who turn to ISS STOXX for its objective and varied offerings, as well as companies focused on ESG, cyber, and governance risk mitigation as a shareholder value enhancing measure. Clients rely on ISS STOXX’s expertise to help them make informed decisions to benefit their stakeholders.(639) Ceres: Toward Consistency: Assessing the Power Sector's Climate Policy Advocacy
Ceres: Toward Consistency: Assessing the Power Sector's Climate Policy Advocacy
This benchmark analysis examines the climate-related risk management, governance, and lobbying practices of 12 of the largest electric utility companies operating in the United States.
Toward Consistency: Assessing the Power Sector's Climate Policy Advocacy shows that power companies are heavily involved in climate policy engagement and are taking steps forward by advocating in support of certain climate policies. But they are also undoing that progress by advocating against other climate policies.
- 100% of the companies in this assessment agree with the scientific consensus concerning the causes of climate change and 100% have lobbied either individually or as part of a coalition for Paris–aligned climate policies in the last three years.
- Yet, at the same time, 100% of the companies have company assessed lobbied in opposition to Paris-aligned climate policies, illustrating the contradictory nature of the utility sector’s advocacy efforts.
(612) Robeco: Power play - sizing up transition risk for electric utilities
Robeco: Power play - sizing up transition risk for electric utilities
As the energy transition accelerates, it is easy for companies to make ambitious pledges. Robeco’s utility sector SDP model can help investors distinguish those which are actually credible.
Summary
- Electric utilities are carbon-intensive
- Sector decarbonization pathways (SDPs) help assess transition risk
- SDP models illuminate future leaders and laggards among electric utilities
(594) FAIRR: Tackling the climate-nature nexus
FAIRR: Tackling the climate-nature nexus
(https://www.fairr.org/resources/reports/tackling-climate-nature-nexus)
Livestock production is a significant contributor to the world crossing the safe operating space for the planetary boundaries.
The negative feedback loops of exceeding planetary boundaries have already resulted in a range of environmental and financially material impacts for the livestock sector and the agri-food value chain. According to the Global Consultation Report of the Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU) published in 2018, climate-related risks of the food system were valued at around USD $1.5 trillion, and this is even higher for nature at USD $1.7 trillion.
Livestock production is a significant contributor to these risks, and the impacts are compounded by the interconnectedness between climate and nature. Understanding the nature of this interconnectedness is critical when designing sustainability strategies and transition plans for climate and nature.
(593) Allianz Global Investors: Going round in circles – the value of waste
Allianz Global Investors: Going round in circles – the value of waste
(https://www.allianzgi.com/en/insights/outlook-and-commentary/the-value-of-waste)
A scarcity of raw materials and an abundance of waste are significant challenges for the planet. A circular economy could be a transformative solution, but it will require a radical rethink of the existing take-make-waste economy and the entire product lifecycle that goes far beyond recycling. What are the opportunities for investors?
Key takeaways
- The circular economy centres on conserving resources through extended product lifecycles and the reintegration of materials into production.
- Circular business models can help reduce costs, minimise environmental impact and mitigate critical raw material supply issues
- Industries will adapt circular economy principles differently based on their unique characteristics and challenges.
- Investors can play an important part by backing innovators, supporting companies in transition and integrating circular economy thinking into their own investment processes.
(591) Planet Tracker: Water Risk Disclosure in the Apparel Industry
Planet Tracker: Water Risk Disclosure in the Apparel Industry
(https://planet-tracker.org/exposing-water-risk/)
Planet Tracker: Urges Increased Water Risk Disclosure in the Apparel Industry
In a recent analysis of 3,900 documents, transcripts and filings from apparel-related companies using Natural Language Processing (NLP), Planet Tracker examined how the management teams of 29 major apparel brands perceive water-related risks.
An overwhelming 90% of the examined documents failed to mention water-related risks, with many companies barely mentioning water-related risk at all, highlighting a significant gap in disclosure practices.
Despite this, the findings reveal a notable increase in mentions of water-related risk over the analysed period, growing from approximately 2,000 in 2018 to more than 9,000 in 2022, implying that in the minority of documents where water-related risk is disclosed, the subject is being more frequently discussed.
The majority of disclosures come from non-luxury brands, followed by luxury brands, while companies mainly operating as apparel retailers show limited mentions of water-related risks.
Minimal attention in transcripts from corporate events suggests a lack of focus from investors on this critical issue - financial institutions, investors, and lenders in the apparel industry face financial exposure to water-related risks.
Download the report: Exposing Water Risk: How do textile brands think about water risk?
Download the Investor Engagement Sheet
(555) Planet Tracker: The Global Plastic Pollution Treaty negotiations – what financial institutions should watch out for…
Planet Tracker: The Global Plastic Pollution Treaty negotiations – what financial institutions should watch out for…
Planet Tracker: The Global Plastic Pollution Treaty negotiations – what financial institutions should watch out for…
Curbing plastic pollution will be on the agenda next week when Ottawa hosts the fourth round of negotiations (INC-4) to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, from 23rd to 29th April 2024.
This is the next stage in the negotiations to develop a global plastics treaty before the end of 2024.
Countries are expected to discuss the provisions of the revised Zero Draft – i.e. an initial attempt to gather high-level thoughts on an issue – as well as agree the rules of procedure.
The latter has been by a small handful of countries to insist on a consensus-based approach for voting, therefore allowing a single country veto rather than permitting a majority-based system.
This is not only making decision-making difficult as contentious issues are sidelined, but it also consumes valuable negotiating time.
Currently, the Zero Draft contains several options that delegates are expected to use as a basis for negotiations, including the scope of the treaty, its implications and the means of implementation.
Read our latest blog for the five main areas that financial institutions should keep in mind.
Most viewed job posts
(301) JobPost: ISS: ESG Research Methodology Specialist – Biodiversity & Thematic Solutions (Makati City / Mumbai | Posted 18 March)
JobPost: ISS: ESG Research Methodology Specialist – Biodiversity & Thematic Solutions (Makati City / Mumbai | Posted 18 March)
JobPost: ISS: ESG Research Methodology Specialist – Biodiversity & Thematic Solutions (Makati City / Mumbai | Posted 18 March)
Most viewed organisations
- (44) Aviva Investors
- (37) abrdn
- (18) X-AM-Test
- (16) SRI-CONNECT
Most viewed users
- (25) Mike Tyrrell @ SRI-CONNECT
- (20) Corinne Yates @ X-AM-Test
- (15) Bob Yavin-Jones @ X-AM-Test
