Danish Prime Minister Mrs. Mette Frederiksen sent a vivid signal on Denmark’s actions for green transition prior to UN Climate Summit in New York. Early Monday morning CET she revealed that the Danish pension funds commits themselves to make further green investments worth 50bn USD by 2030.
CEO of PensionDanmark Mr. Torben Möger Pedersen was in New York to bring forward the perspectives in the agreement in his position as vice chairman in Insurance and Pension Denmark. The commitments from the Danish pension industry will not alone strengthen the Danish government’s opportunities to obtain own ambitions of a 70 percent reduction in Danish CO2 emission before 2030.
”The deal will make Denmark an absolute world leader in a necessary green transition. A joined Danish pension industry and the Danish government sends a clear signal that the ambitious Danish objectives - not only for Denmark but on behalf of the climate of the entire planet – are highly substantial and backed by the necessary capital,” says Torben Möger Pedersen.
He considers massive private investments in for example innovative green infrastructure such as wind farms and solar power to be essential if it is to be realistic to reach the goals on behalf of the climate:
“The challenges of climate change are to be recognized as this generation’s moon landing – if not even more comprehensive. That fact obligates the large Danish pension industry to spearhead the efforts for green transition – not only in Denmark, but also through investments outside of Denmark. PensionDanmark is already on track with momentum in new ways of investing through for example Danish Climate Investment Fund, The Danish SDG Fund and New Market Fund. Private-public partnership utilizing blended finance makes it possible to accomplish investments in the whole world that weren’t possible before.”
Foreign Office
PensionDanmark was an early instigator among peers in the Danish pension industry when it comes to investing in renewable energy and the labor market pension fund has already made green investemnts worth 3.8bn USD. That contributes to a reduction in the CO2 emission by 3.4 million tonnes a year. However, these numbers are set to evolve rapidly in the coming years.
But the commitment from the Danish pension industry to add an extra 50bn USD on top of the 19bn USD already invested in green transition today, should not only stand as a helping hand to the solution of climate issues. Not if you ask Torben Möger Pedersen:
”It is not to be reckoned as a burden. The challenge contains very large-scale business opportunities for Denmark that again can contribute with good investment returns to Danish pension savings. If we can contribute so that many other countries realise the business case in green transition it can open the doors to a totally different scale of private investments in sustainable development,” says Torben Möger Pedersen.
PensionDanmark and the rest of the Danish pension funds are also committed to deliver continuing reports on the process of the proportions of the total green investmenst in order to give the outside world a good insight to determine if the commitments are also followed by tangible actions.
