The $1.6 trillion sovereign wealth fund of Norway pushed Shell on Friday to provide investors with additional details regarding its updated climate targets. However, the fund declined to support a request made by a group of 27 shareholders to fortify those targets.
The group of shareholders has filed a resolution to be voted on at Shell’s annual general meeting (AGM) on May 21.
According to LSEG statistics, Shell’s second-largest shareholder is the wealth fund of Norway, which is the largest equity investor in the world. The fund’s operator, Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), holds a holding of 3.03% in Shell.
In March, Shell dropped its 2035 carbon intensity reduction goal. Additionally, it softened its 2030 carbon reduction target, citing high gas demand and uncertainty around the energy transition. Nonetheless, the business reiterated its goal to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050.
The fund stated on its website that “Shell’s energy transition strategy has evolved under the new CEO. We nevertheless believe that it sufficiently retains the core components of a Paris-aligned transition plan,” referencing the climate change agreement from 2015.
“We have encouraged Shell to make additional strategy disclosures that could reduce uncertainty about the company’s direction in the mid-2030s,” it stated.
In March, Shell dropped its 2035 carbon intensity reduction goal. Additionally, it softened its 2030 carbon reduction target, citing high gas demand and uncertainty around the energy transition. Together, the investors oversee assets worth almost $4 trillion.
The resolution calls on Shell to include emissions from fuels burned by its customers in its medium-term carbon reduction commitments. Additionally, it urges alignment with the Paris Agreement.
Shell suggested voting against the motion in a memo sent out prior to the AGM, stating that it “is against both good governance and shareholders’ interests, and also has negative consequences for our customers.”
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