Tag Archives: BlackRock

Is BlackRock Starting to Walk the Walk?

Climate risk is investment risk.

So says BlackRock.  And when you manage $8.7 trillion, people tend to listen to what you say.  I’ve been noting for some time that BlackRock’s statements seemed to presage increasing shareholder activism with respect to climate.  And yet there have been skeptics.  As noted in ClimateWire last week, BlackRock’s actions have not always seemed to match its rhetoric.… More

Shareholder Activism on Climate Is Only Going to Increase

While EPA continues to go backwards on climate, evidence continues to mount that investors are only going to get more aggressive.  There were two developments worth noting this month.

First, Bloomberg Markets reported that BlackRock, which seems increasingly willing to put its mouth where its money is, has sent letters to 120 companies, telling them to report climate risks in a manner consistent with the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures. … More

The Latest on Shareholder Climate Activity: BlackRock Begins Explaining Its Votes

We previously noted BlackRock’s recent shareholder votes in favor of increased reporting of climate risks by ExxonMobil and Occidental.  Now, BlackRock has stepped it up a notch by including “vote bulletins” on its investment stewardship web page.  The bulletins will be provided:

in relation to certain high profile proposals at company shareholder meetings. Although we currently explain many of these votes in our quarterly reports,… More

Shareholders at ExxonMobil Vote in Favor of Climate Change Reporting

On May 31, shareholders at Exxon Mobil Corp. (“ExxonMobil”) voted in favor of a climate change resolution asking the company to publish an annual report on the business impact of measures designed to limit global temperature increases to 2 degrees centigrade, the target set by the Paris Agreement.

The non-binding resolution passed with more than 62% of the votes cast. Specifically, the resolution asks that,… More

Shareholders Are Getting Restless; Climate Change Resolution Passes at Occidental

In March, I noted BlackRock’s increasing concern over climate.  One element of its statement was “potential support for shareholder resolutions on climate risk”, where “management’s response to our prior engagement has been inadequate.  Turns out that they meant it.

Earlier this month, shareholders at Occidental Petroleum approved a climate reporting proposal – over the directors’ opposition – proposed by CalPERS and supported by BlackRock,… More