Australian building and construction industry superfund Cbus announced today that it has launched a new “Climate Change Roadmap,” including significant portfolio emission reduction targets. Cbus also announced that it has joined the United Nations Convened Net-Zero Asset Owners Alliance.

Under the new program, Cbus stated that it will target a 45% reduction in absolute portfolio emissions by 2030, and the firm has committed to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, as well. According to Cbus, the 2030 target is derived from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) 2018 Special Report, which estimated that a 45% carbon reduction from 2010 levels is needed to have any chance of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees. The 2050 goal aligns with Cbus’ commitment to the Paris Agreement.

Cbus Super CIO Kristian Fok said:

“Cbus Climate Change Roadmap represents a strong and sure determination to see our members retire securely in a safe climate.

“The average Cbus member is 39 years old. It’s our responsibility to safeguard their investments as the financial impacts and physical effects of climate change intensify.

“This science has made clear the targets and timeframes. The course that we have charted will see Cbus reduce our portfolio emissions while investing further in renewable energy and climate solutions, as well as avoiding ‘stranded assets’ as the economy transitions.”

As part of the Climate Change Roadmap, Cbus will develop a stranded asset framework, avoiding assets the investment manager believes will be left behind as the economy transitions to more sustainable, low-carbon solutions. The superfund has already been reducing exposure to investments classified as high climate risk.

Fok said:

“The economy of 2030, let alone the economy of 2050, is going to look very different from what we have experienced over the last few decades. That poses risks for long-term investors like Cbus. There are assets that simply won’t see out their traditional economic life.”

Cbus’ membership in the Net-Zero Asset Owners Alliance makes it the first Australian financial institution to join the initiative. The Alliance is made up of an international group of institutional investors, representing nearly $5 trillion in assets, committed to transitioning their investment portfolios to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Fok commented:

“Cbus recognizes that to decarbonize the global economy in line with the Paris Agreement requires collective action. Cbus is determined to play our part in these global advocacy efforts.”