Repsol Commits to Align Climate Lobbying With Paris Agreement After Investor Pressure

By Maitane Sardon

Repsol SA (REP.MC) has committed to line up its lobbying activities with the Paris Agreement on climate change, responding to pressure from a group of investors with over $35 trillion in assets under management.

The Spanish oil-and-gas company said Monday that it will support and lobby for public policy measures aimed at mitigating climate change risks. Repsol said this support will apply to all engagement it conducts globally and to the policy engagement it conducts indirectly via third party organizations.

Some of the investors that have been engaging with Repsol over the last year, including BNP Paribas Asset Management--the fund arm of BNP Paribas SA (BNP.FR)--and the Church of England Pensions Board, said they welcomed the company's announcement.

"We congratulate Repsol on making the right move and giving their investors confidence that they understand their responsibility to robustly and transparently steward their direct and indirect lobbying activities", said Adam Matthews, co-lead for the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change's European Corporate Climate Lobbying Initiative and director for ethics and engagement for the Church of England Pensions Board.

The investor group also said it encourages Repsol to set short- and long-term carbon-neutrality targets by 2050 for Spain and for Europe.

Write to Maitane Sardon at maitane.sardon@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 05, 2019 07:47 ET (12:47 GMT)

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