Nine U.S. companies are being targeted by investors – they face a record number of global warming shareholder resolutions in light of their refusal to respond to the risks of climate change.
Investors are concerned the 9 firms are lagging behind their industry peers, potentially undermining their long-term competitiveness in responding to the business challenges from global climate change.
These most resistant to change companies include influential coal companies, and oil and power producers. Two of the oil companies have extensive investments in Canada’s oil sands region, where carbon-intensive extraction technologies are being used to produce more than one million barrels of oil each day.
"Extraction of oil from oil sands is a risky proposition and will likely in the long term be a disaster for both investors and inhabitants of an increasingly warming planet," said Margaret Weber, ICCR Board Chair and Adrian Dominican Sisters Coordinator of Corporate Responsibility. "Faith-based investors are mindful of the high externalized costs of oil sands to indigenous communities, to the boreal forest, to watersheds and to our children."
The resolutions are among a record 63 global warming resolutions filed with 56 U.S. companies and one Canadian company as part of the 2009 proxy season.
The resolutions, seeking greater disclosure from companies on their financial exposure and response strategies to climate-related business trends, were filed by some of the nation’s largest public pension funds, as well as labor, foundation, religious and other institutional shareholders. The shareholder filings are coordinated by the Ceres investor coalition and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), a group of faith-based investors.
The Climate Watch Companies include:
Electric Power: Southern
Coal: Massey Energy, Consol Energy
Oil & Gas: Ultra Petroleum, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Canadian Natural Resources
Automotive: General Motors
Home building: Standard Pacific
"Companies in every industry, especially energy sectors, must assess and mitigate climate change risks," said New York City Comptroller William Thompson Jr., whose office oversees $115 billion in pension fund assets and filed resolutions with electric power and coal companies. "Investors require full and transparent disclosure of the actions companies are taking to address the risks and opportunities of climate change, so that they can make informed investment decisions."
Investors said the economic recession should not delay substantive business efforts to address rising global temperatures.
"Despite the unrelenting poor economic news, we know that taking care of our environment is also taking care of the world’s economy," said Jack Ehnes, Chief Executive Officer of the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), the nation’s second largest public pension fund which own shares in virtually all of the companies targeted with shareholder resolutions. "We can’t be distracted by short-term concerns at the expense of meaningful action to mitigate the impacts of climate change."
Chevron: has extensive investments in Alberta, Canada’s oil sands, and has resisted shareholder requests to disclose potential financial risks associated with these carbon-intensive projects that encompasses millions of acres.
Greenhouse gas emissions associated with oil sands development is three times higher than conventional oil extraction and refining.
Chevron owns 20% of a major oil sands extraction effort, the Athabasca Oil Sands Project, and is the operator at a large proposed oil sands project at Ells River, yet its public disclosure of potential financial exposure from climate regulations and other project risks pales in comparison to Shell and Suncor.
The resolution outlines key risks from the project and asks that the company report on environmental damage resulting from its expanding oil sands operation. (Green Century contact: Emily Stone, 617-482-0800, and Ceres contact: Andrew Logan, 202-746-0661)
CONSOL Energy: coal combustion accounts for about 33% of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the U.S. The New York City Pension Funds resolution filed with CONSOL – the nation’s largest bituminous coal producer – requests a report on how they are responding to growing regulatory and competitive pressure to significantly reduce GHG emissions. (NYC Comptroller Contact: Laura Rivera, 212-669-2701)
ExxonMobil: for a decade, it has been unresponsive to investor requests regarding strategies intended to meet growing demand for diversified clean energy sources.
4 climate resolutions request: the board develop comprehensive GHG emission reduction goals: report on the impact of climate change on emerging markets and on U.S. leadership in achieving energy independence; and disclose plans for developing for renewable energy.
Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment, Steven Viederman, Province of St. Joseph of the Capuchin Order, and Neva Goodwin. (Tri-State Coalition Contact: Pat Daly, 973-509-8800)
General Motors: Investors have a long, unsuccessful history of filing shareholder resolutions with GM and engaging with the company on climate-related business strategies. A resolution filed by the Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment asks GM to set GHG reduction goals from its products and operations, as other U.S. and foreign automakers have already done.
The resolution cites GM’s ongoing litigation to stop California’s clean car standards from being adopted and its lackluster response compared to Ford in developing a business model that accounts for climate change. (Tri-State Coalition Contact: Pat Daly, 973-509-8800)
Massey Energy: The Virginia-based coal company continues to resist shareholder resolutions requesting that it develop and disclose a strategy for responding to climate change. 30% of shareholders voted in favor of the resolution last year.
The New York City Pension Funds filed a resolution, for the third consecutive year, requesting a report on how the company is responding to growing regulatory and competitive pressure to reduce GHG emissions. Massey is the nation’s 4th largest coal producer. (NYC Comptroller Contact: Laura Rivera, 212-669-2701)
Standard Pacific: Unlike other leading homebuilders, they have opposed shareholder requests the past three years to disclose its strategies and performance on energy efficiency and other climate-related issues.
A resolution filed by the Nathan Cummings Foundation asks the CA-based homebuilder to adopt quantitative goals for boosting energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from its products and operations.
Homebuilders have an important role in mitigating climate change because 40% of GHGs come from building energy use, and building energy efficiency is one of the most cost effective means of reducing global warming pollution. (Nathan Cummings Foundation Contact: Lance Lindblom, 212-787-7300, and Ceres contact: Betsy Boyle, Ceres 617-247-0700 X143
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd: One of the largest and most established producers active in Canada’s oil sands, the Calgary-based company has refused to meet with investors on the issue of climate change, and, unlike other oil companies, it has not made any renewable energy investments.
Ethical Funds filed a resolution with Canadian Natural Resources in 2007 requesting that it disclose its climate risks, but the company has not responded. CNQ is the only oil company opposing the recommendations of the Government of Alberta’s Cumulative Environmental Management Association Multi-stakeholder process. (http://www.cemaonline.ca/ ) (Ethical Funds Contact: Robert Walker, 604-714-3833)
Southern: The nation’s largest electric power producer, which emits more than 160 million tons of CO2 emissions a year, has balked at shareholder resolutions the past several years asking it to set GHG reduction targets.
In filing the resolution, the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth cited the company for its adequate climate risk disclosure, but weak action to mitigate that exposure by reducing GHG emissions.
37% of its industry peers, including American Electric Power, Duke Energy and Exelon, disclosed absolute GHG reductions targets in the Carbon Disclosure Project’s most recent annual survey released in 2008. (Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth, NJ contact: Sr. Barbara Aires, 973-290-5402)
Ultra Petroleum: Houston-based Ultra has resisted shareholder requests the past three years to disclose its strategies for addressing climate change, despite relatively strong shareholder voting support. While Ultra has a relatively small market capitalization (about $5 billion), its resistance to acknowledging climate change risks puts it out of step with its peers.
A resolution filed by the Nathan Cummings Foundation asks them to report on its plans to address climate change. (Nathan Cummings Foundation Contact: Lance Lindblom, 212-787-7300, Ceres contact: Andrew Logan, 202-746-0661)
Of course, companies in many industries are subject to investor resolutions this year, including:
Auto/Transportation: Avis/Budget, Hertz
Banks: Ameriprise, Citigroup, Fifth Third Bancorp, State Street
Building and Big Box Companies: Bed, Bath & Beyond, Boston Properties, General Growth, Home Depot, Las Vegas Sands, Lennar, Pulte Homes, Ryland
Coal: Alpha Natural Resources, Foundation Coal, International Coal
Electric Power: Dominion, Dynegy, Idacorp, Mirant, NV Energy (formerly Sierra Pacific)
Forestry: International Paper, Meredith, RR Donnelly
Oil & Gas: ConocoPhillips, Haliburton, Noble Energy, Oneok, Range Resources, South Jersey Industries, Spectra
Other S&P 500 Companies: Apple, Aqua America, Assurant, Broadcom, Denbury Resources, Dover Corporation, Flowserve, Kadant, MetLife, Middleby, Novell, SanDisk, Southwest Airlines, St. Jude, Stryker, Valmont.
Canadian Companies: Great-West Life & Annuity
Listen to the press conference
See the full list of company resolutions:
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