June 5, 2023
•News
As climate change continues to unfold around the globe, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) concerns are increasingly driving investment decisions. This is especially true for investors in the oil and gas sector, which accounts for an outsized share of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Corporate pledges to purchase renewable electricity have led to significant new solar and wind capacity investments and driven down the carbon intensity of the power sector in the United States.
The rise of ESG investing—investment focused on environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and corporate governance—in the 21st century has created significant pressures on oil companies.
As pressure mounts on energy companies to address environmental, social, and governance (ESG) concerns, now front and center for many large investors, the “social” aspects of ESG are coming to the fore. “Social” considerations gained attention during the 2020 shareholder proxy season, as witnessed by an intensification of focus on human capital and talent management in generating long-term value.