The U.S. sustainable infrastructure investor Hannon Armstrong (NYSE: HASI), the Taiwanese bank E.SUN Commercial Bank and the Mauritius hotel brand LUX Resorts & Hotels have today committed to implement the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) in the next three years.
These new commitments were announced at the Transition at scale event, taking place in Paris during the week that celebrates the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2015. Two years after the launch of the TCFD initiative, the momentum around the recommendations keeps growing. There are currently multiple initiatives showcasing companies, investors’ and banks’ support for the work of the TCFD. The CDSB initiative aims to bring together companies looking to disclose climate-related financial information in their mainstream reports within a clear timeline, while providing support for them to do so. The collective work of all the organisations working in support of the TCFD is driving unprecedent attention around the importance of climate disclosure, which is a key component of sustainable financial markets.
The companies committed are all at different stages in their journey towards integrating climate-related information in their mainstream reports.
Hannon Armstrong’s investment thesis, for example, asserts that in a world increasingly defined by climate change, better risk-adjusted returns are going to be achieved by investing on the right side of the climate change line. Through its commitment to measure and report the environmental impact of its investments, Hannon Armstrong publishes a Sustainability Report Card as part of its Annual Report, which uses CarbonCount® to score expected reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions resulting from each US$1,000 of investment. In this way, the company can identify the most capital-efficient carbon-reducing investments. With approximately $4.6 billion in managed assets as of September 30, 2017, Hannon Armstrong is a member of the CDSB initiative on TCFD and the Ceres Investor Network on Climate Risk and Sustainability.
LUX* Resorts & Hotels, for instance, ensures transparency and accuracy of their information by submitting every year to a thorough external audit before publishing the integrated annual report, according to Vishnee Payen, Group Sustainability & CSR Manager. The audit covers “non-financial KPIs like carbon emissions, human rights training, gender and wages equality, CSR actions, energy, water consumption and waste production performance against baseline, ensuring progress on all fronts.”
Joseph Huang, President and CEO, E.SUN said: "E.SUN understands that the financial services sector plays a crucial role in climate change mitigation and adaptation. ESUN recognizes itself not only as a corporate in Taiwan, but a corporate citizen of the world. We apply skills and expertise of financial institution to make positive influence on climate change. In addition, we identify risks in financial investment, lending and other business activities in order to facilitate risk management and seek potential opportunities for growth. E.SUN is now a signatory of CDP and Equator Principal. E.SUN has been listed in DJSI since 2014, and is now member of DJSI World Index."
Simon Messenger, Managing Director, CDSB, commented: “As we look at the next phase towards delivering on the Paris Agreement and the work of the TCFD, it’s critical to see more companies making this important commitment. As more businesses report on the risks that climate change creates globally, it will become clearer how our financial system needs to adapt and embrace the new opportunities that are being created.”
There are now 14 companies committed to our initiative, including Aviva plc, Royal DSM, Enagas, E.SUN Commercial Bank, Ferrovial, Hannon Armstrong, Iberdrola, LUX Resorts & Hotels, Marks & Spencer, Philips Lighting, Sopra Steria Group, Unilever, Wipro Ltd, WPP. See more information about the initiative here.