Investors step up pressure on global energy watchdog over climate change

(Reuters News, 18 Nov 2019) Pension funds, insurers and large companies sign joint letter to IEA head, urging him to do more to support implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), faced renewed pressure on Monday to overhaul the organisation's influential projections for fossil fuel demand from investors and scientists concerned about climate change.

Pension funds, insurers and large companies were among 65 signatories of a joint letter to Birol, seen by Reuters, urging him to do more to support the implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement to avert catastrophic global warming.

"The year 2020 marks a turning point for the world — the year when we either grasp the challenges and opportunities before us, or continue delaying and obstructing the low-carbon transformation," the letter said.

The letter represented the first coordinated response by investors, scientists and campaigners pushing Birol to rethink the Paris-based organisation's flagship annual outlook since the latest edition was launched on Nov. 13.

Known as the World Energy Outlook, the document, which runs to hundreds of pages, helps shape expectations in financial markets over how quickly the world could transition from a fossil fuel-dominated energy system to cleaner sources of power.

Since the start of this year, various networks of institutional investors, asset owners, scientists and climate advocacy groups have been urging Birol to change the way the report is produced and presented.

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Reuters News, 18 Nov 2019: Investors step up pressure on global energy watchdog over climate change