Norway’s Giant Oil Fund Diverts Billions into Renewables
Even nations that built their fortunes on fossil fuels are seeing the future is green. Norway’s $1Tn oil fund, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, is to plunge billions of dollars into wind and solar power projects. The decision follows Saudi Arabia’s oil fund selling off its last oil and gas assets.
Read the entire article at The Guardian.
Other national funds built up from oil profits are also thought to be ramping up their investments in renewables. The moves show that countries that got rich on fossil fuels are diversifying their investments and seeking future profits in the clean energy needed to combat climate change. Analysts say the investments are likely to power faster growth of green energy.
Norway’s government gave the go-ahead on Friday for its fund to invest in renewable energy projects that are not listed on stock markets. Unlisted projects make up more than two-thirds of the whole renewable infrastructure market, which is worth trillions of dollars.
Previously, it had warned that such investments could be at risk from political interference. But now the sum the fund can invest in green projects has been doubled to $14bn. “Even a fund built on oil is seeing that the future is green,” said Jan Erik Saugestad, CEO of Storebrand Asset Management.
In March, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund said it would dispose of its investments in 134 companies that explore for oil and gas, worth almost $8bn. But it is retaining stakes in oil firms such as Shell and BP that have renewable energy divisions.
Norway also announced on Friday that the fund would sell off its stakes in more coal companies, having set a new limit for them of 20m tonnes of reserves. This may see its investments in giants Glencore and RWE dumped. The fund divested $6.5bn of coal-related investments in 2015.
Across the world, almost 1,000 institutional investors, managing more than more than $6tn, have now committed to fossil fuel divestment, driven by concerns about global warming and financial losses if climate action cuts the value of coal, oil and gas investments.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund sold its last investment linked to oil and gas last week, with the sale of its $69bn stake in Saudi Basic Industries Corp to the nation’s oil company, Aramco.
