Topics tagged with 'Green finance'
Climate change most significant risk ever faced by financial system: Adrian Orr
27 Oct 2021
CLIMATE CHANGE poses the most significant risk ever confronted by the financial system - both locally and internationally, Reserve Bank governor Adrian Orr told a media briefing yesterday.
Look beyond carbon credits to put a price on nature’s services: experts
5 Oct 2021
Putting a value on nature could be the key to getting the trillions of dollars in investments nature-based solutions need to successfully tackle the climate crisis, experts said at a recent sustainability conference in Singapore.
Stronger NSW 2030 emissions reduction goal signals increased investment opportunity
29 Sep 2021
Media Release - The NSW Government has announced it will halve emissions from 2005 levels by 2030.
Legal experts define a new global crime: ‘ecocide’
27 Sep 2021
A panel of 12 legal experts from around the world have released a proposed definition for a new international crime called “ecocide” covering “severe” and “widespread or long-term environmental damage” that would be prosecuted before the International Criminal Court in the Hague.
KiwiRail obtains climate certified loan for ferries
23 Sep 2021
KiwiRail is the first company in the world to have a shipping loan certified under the Climate Bonds Initiative Framework – despite having come in for criticism for opting for a hybrid diesel system over a bio-methanol one with lower emissions.
Climate change ETFs found to be undermining war on global warming
21 Sep 2021
Climate-focused investment funds are undermining the fight against global warming by routinely engaging in greenwashing, academic research has claimed.
Climate change and price stability mandates at central banks
14 Sep 2021
Traditionally, financial market actors and monetary authorities have considered environmental matters as outside of the scope of monetary policymakers. This stance may change now that central banks are beginning to recognize that climate change could present real threats to price stability.
Investors want climate change information
14 Sep 2021
Media Release - More than four in every five (81%) retail investors think climate related information is important to their investment decision making, with half saying companies have a responsibility to address climate change.
Harmonizing green incentives
10 Sep 2021
Thomas Pogge is an academic philosopher with a practical bent. His idea of a health impact fund was a practical solution to incentivise the development of drugs that would benefit those in poor countries. Now he's proposing a scheme tackle the problems of banks investing in fossil fuels in the developing world.
Five things to know about carbon pricing
3 Sep 2021
The IMF's principal environmental fiscal policy expert, Ian Parry, outlines five things you should know about carbon pricing.
A faster, fairer way to retire carbon-emitting assets
2 Sep 2021
New financial instruments are being designed and brought into the fight against climate change. One such potential instrument is the 'carbon retirement portfolio' (CRP).
Global carbon tax could turbocharge ‘green shorting’
26 Aug 2021
Australia's largest ethical super fund says the opportunity for investors to profit from ‘green shorting’ will grow as global leaders take greater action on climate change, which could act as a catalyst for sliding sharemarket valuations for fossil fuel producers.
Central banks failing on climate action
25 Aug 2021
Released in advance of the Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole meeting, a study assessing twelve of the world’s largest central banks against ten climate-related policy criteria has found all failing to align their lending, asset purchases and regulatory activities with the Paris Agreement target.
KiwiSaver funds slowly divesting from fossil fuels
24 Aug 2021
KiwiSaver funds’ investments in fossil fuel companies fell by $331 million in the six months to March, according to data released by ethical investment charity Mindful Money.
Insurance industry seeks to limit fossil fuel exposure
23 Aug 2021
With global climate change threatening to wreak havoc on their industry, insurance companies are increasingly looking to limit their exposure to the fossil fuel sector.
Climate Change investors group throws weight behind mandatory reporting
19 Aug 2021
The Investor Group on Climate Change – which includes Australian and New Zealand funds with more than $3.2 trillion under management – says the number of investors making climate-related disclosures remains too low and mandatory reporting is required.
Rise of the 'carbon capitalist'
18 Aug 2021
Matthew Roling, an adjunct professor of finance at Wayne State University, argues that carbon markets will become 'the largest commodity markets in history.'
NZ's only climate venture fund makes first investment ...in Australia
5 Aug 2021
Media Release - Climate Venture Capital Fund, New Zealand’s only dedicated climate-change venture capital fund, has made its first investment.
Climate change business conference announced
4 Aug 2021
Media Release - The Sustainable Business Council (SBC) and the Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC) have joined forces with the Environmental Defence Society (EDS) to take the 2021 Climate Change and Business Conference - Now to Net Zero, to a new level.
The rise of greenflation
3 Aug 2021
The world faces a growing paradox in the campaign to contain climate change. The harder it pushes the transition to a greener economy, the more expensive the campaign becomes, and the less likely it is to achieve the aim of limiting the worst effects of global warming.
New centre for sustainable finance launched
29 Jul 2021
Media Release - Toitû Tahua, the Centre for Sustainable Finance, was launched today to implement the Sustainable Finance Forum’s 2030 roadmap for a sustainable financial system.
China avoids coal projects in Belt and Road for first time
28 Jul 2021
China didn't finance any coal projects via its Belt and Road Initiative in the first half, the first time that's happened since the plan was launched in 2013, the International Institute of Green Finance said in a report.
First ecosystem with its own insurance policy
22 Jul 2021
A 100-mile stretch of coral reef in Mexico is now insured just like any other valuable asset. Is this the future of conservation?
Contact converts NZD$305m to Sustainability Linked Loans
13 Jul 2021
Media Release - Contact Energy (Contact) now has New Zealand’s largest group of Sustainability Linked Loans (SLLs) after converting its remaining NZD$305m of bank facilities to SLLs.
Big insurance companies launch net-zero climate alliance
12 Jul 2021
Eight of the world's leading insurance and reinsurance companies on Sunday launched an alliance to help speed up a transition to a net zero emissions economy.
Emissions should be treated like financial debt: researchers
9 Jul 2021
Researchers have proposed a scheme that treats carbon emissions like financial debt.
EU to funnel hundreds of billions to sustainable finance
7 Jul 2021
The European Union says it will harness banks and markets to funnel hundreds of billions of euros annually into sustainable investments and create the first “climate-neutral continent” by 2050.
IGCC appoints new CEO
2 Jul 2021
Media Release - The Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC) board has today announced the appointment of Rebecca Mikula-Wright as Chief Executive Officer of the organisation.
Winners at the Mindful Money Ethical and Impact Investment awards
1 Jul 2021
Media Release - The inaugural Ethical and Impact Investment awards were held on 29 June at Generator in Wynyard Quarter in an event with over 200 participants.
Climate risk critical to investment decisions: Orr
30 Jun 2021
Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr urged attendees at yesterday’s Mindful Money Awards to incorporate climate risk into how they invest and allocate capital.
90% of institutional investors taking climate change into account
30 Jun 2021
Ninety percent of institutional investors say climate change is the most significant ESG (environmental, social, governance) factor influencing their decisions to invest in a company.
France introduces corporate climate disclosures
23 Jun 2021
France is striving to confirm its position as a global leader in corporate climate disclosures with a new set of binding targets that require investors to declare how green their assets.
India, South Africa could pilot $2bn coal transition scheme
22 Jun 2021
A climate fund is looking for two or three coal-dependent emerging economies to pilot a scheme to accelerate a shift to cleaner industries by mobilising private finance.
Investors holding $41 trillion demand action on climate — now
11 Jun 2021
Investors managing more than $41 trillion in assets are loudly calling on world leaders to immediately step up their climate game if they don't want to miss out on a wave of clean energy investment.
CEOs urge world leaders to take bolder climate action
11 Jun 2021
More than 70 CEOs from some of the world's biggest companies have urged governments to do much more to tackle climate change, including forcing businesses to reduce their carbon emissions.
Reserve Bank to commit puutea to climate change
3 Jun 2021
The Reserve Bank will use part of its $85 billion balance sheet to help deal with the challenges of climate change, the bank’s head of financial markets Vanessa Rayner said in a speech released yesterday.
G7 nations committing billions more to fossil fuel than green energy
3 Jun 2021
The nations that make up the G7 have pumped billions of dollars more into fossil fuels than they have into clean energy since the Covid-19 pandemic, despite their promises of a green recovery.
Lawyers for Climate Action call on Govt to walk the talk
1 Jun 2021
Lawyers for Climate Action have told the Government that exempting government agencies from financial disclosure requirements would be a fundamental failure by government to lead by example.
Big oil faces its reckoning: Fortune
28 May 2021
Fortune Magazine declared yesterday a good day for the planet. "Three of the largest oil and gas companies were forced to make radical changes to curb their carbon emissions as the climate emergency pushed shareholders and a Dutch court to turn their backs on Big Oil."
Fossil fuel divestment is the road to climate justice
25 May 2021
Professor Susie O'Brien argues that oil is the lifeblood of our culture and climate crisis, and divestment is the way to achieve climate justice, in this opinion piece for The Conversation.
Investors jump into the climate risk space
21 May 2021
Big name investors are putting new capital behind "climate intelligence" — the sophisticated analytics that companies and governments will need to uncover and reduce risk in a warming world.
Best by the rest...
14 May 2021
Our weekly roundup of notable climate change stories featured in local media incudes: a compelling case for meatless meat, a survey showing times up for gas guzzlers, and the tipping point looming for business.
Niwa beefing up its climate research capability
4 May 2021
NIWA is on a global hunt for eight new data scientists to join its growing team of AI experts working on climate change related research.
10 YEARS AGO...
3 May 2021
Ten years ago, we were reporting that banks were starting to lend on carbon as forestry companies secured contracts as far forward as 2020.
Ardern touts NZ's climate action at summit
23 Apr 2021
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern used her appearance at President Joe Biden’s virtual Leaders’ Summit on Climate Change to extol the virtues of New Zealand’s response to the climate crises.
350 Aotearoa welcomes govt's stance
20 Apr 2021
MEDIA RELEASE - Climate justice organisation 350 Aotearoa is celebrating the direction from the government for the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) to accelerate its moves to divest from investments in fossil fuels.
New climate indices launched
14 Apr 2021
MEDIA RELEASE - Scientific Beta launches unique series of pure climate indices that translates companies' climate performance and alignment engagement into portfolio decisions
France's e-bikes for clunkers scheme
13 Apr 2021
France is offering the owners of old, exhaust-belching cars the opportunity to hand over their vehicles for scrap in return for a 2,500 euro grant to buy an electric bicycle.
Farage...from Ukip leader to green finance spokesman
29 Mar 2021
He has criticised Greta Thunberg for “alarmism” and wind power as “economic insanity”.
Lobby group launches ‘blueprint’ for ocean management reform
Thu 18 Sep 2025
The Environmental Defence Society yesterday released its plan to tackle widespread ecological decline in our oceans.
Carbon price steady after failed quarterly auction
Tue 16 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | The carbon price has continued to trade in its familiar moribund range in the high $50s following last week’s failed quarterly auction, with ample supply still trading on the secondary market at about $10 below this year’s $68 auction floor.
NZ needs to be part of a regional SAF strategy: Z, Air NZ
9 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand needs to be part of a regional strategic approach to sourcing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), with domestic production less the aim than ensuring access to the fuel from one of a number of strategically positioned bio-refineries around the world.
'Non-negotiable' – EU carbon pricing to hit Kiwi exporters, expert warns
11 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | High carbon exports will inevitably face a high carbon tax at the EU border, possibly in the next five years, and high methane agricultural products might not be exempt, an international expert told a local audience yesterday.
UK foreign aid for nature hits £800m record due to cash for carbon credits
Tue 16 Sep 2025
The UK’s climate-aid spending on “nature protection and restoration” reached record levels of nearly £800m last year, according to government figures obtained by Carbon Brief.
Air NZ declares surprisingly low SAF prices
3 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Air New Zealand is able to source sustainable aviation fuel at between 1.5 and 2.5 times the price of conventional fossil fuels used for flying, all sourced from the US.
No bidders front to carbon auction - again
10 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | Today’s quarterly carbon auction was a non-event yet again, making it the third consecutive auction this year with no bidders, with the secondary market price still limping along at nearly 20% below the auction floor.
IEA reiterates ‘no new oil and gas needed’ if global warming is limited to 1.5C
Thu 18 Sep 2025
The world would not need to invest in new oil and gas projects if demand for the fuels fell in line with the 1.5C limit on global warming, says the International Energy Agency.
'Atrocious' and 'bizarre': experts slam Act Party's climate policy
3 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Act Party is promising to challenge New Zealand’s Paris Agreement climate target, while the coalition Government’s other minor partner, NZ First, also says it wants to reevaluate the country’s commitment to the international treaty.
Industry struggles with double-digit power price hikes
Mon 15 Sep 2025
As power prices surge by double-digit amounts for the second year in a row, industrial users can’t keep absorbing cost increases, the Major Electricity Users’ Group says.
The merchants of doubt are back
3 Sep 2025
OPINION: If you don’t follow climate policy closely, you might not know that the Trump administration is launching an effort to overturn one of the most fundamental pillars of American climate policy.
Milestone for NZ Steel electrification
10 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | NZ Steel has passed an installation milestone for its new electric arc furnace, which will reduce emissions from the Glenbrook steel mill site by as much as one megatonne (1Mt) a year.
RMA to speed up fossil fuel consents
18 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | An energy lobby group has welcomed a last-minute amendment to the RMA that puts fossil fuels on the same footing as renewables, however a sustainable energy expert says the move “beggars belief.”
Watts not considering removing electricity from ETS
Tue 16 Sep 2025
Energy and Climate Change Minister, Simon Watts, says he is “not currently considering” removing electricity generation from the Emissions Trading Scheme, as proposed by NZ First Minister Shane Jones.
Gentailers told to behave as ministers weigh Frontier review
Wed 17 Sep 2025
The chief executives of Contact, Meridian, Mercury and Genesis met Energy and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts on Thursday for their regular monthly session.
Declining sea-ice is altering Antarctic food webs
11 Sep 2025
A new study shows a significant change in Antarctic phytoplankton over time that could cascade through the marine food web and affect the ocean’s capacity as a carbon sink.
Science cuts will hold back climate research
Wed 17 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | A crisis in government-backed science funding is worsening, with dire implications for climate research in New Zealand, according to experts from the scientific community.
Marginal drop in last year's regional emissions
27 Aug 2025
Regional greenhouse gas emissions were down slightly last year, with a fall in gas supply leading to a big drop in Taranaki, but more coal burnt leading to higher emissions in Waikato, according to new figures from Stats NZ
Indigenous forest 'islands' could help transition exotic plantations to native bush
11 Sep 2025
Native forest 'islands' within exotic plantations might be the key to transitioning plantations from exotic to Indigenous, according to new research.
Decline in global oil and gas field output accelerating, IEA says
Wed 17 Sep 2025
The decline in output from mature global oil and gas fields is accelerating amid greater reliance on shale and deep offshore resources.
A modest geothermal strategy
31 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The Government has unveiled a far more modest geothermal energy strategy than its primary backer, Resources Minister Shane Jones, had sought.
Media round-up
5 Sep 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: The great methane debate; law change scuppers legal challenge to irrigation scheme consent; and what are the energy and climate implications of the $7.5 billion Amazon Web Services data centre deal?
Coal imports up 650%
12 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams and Liz Kivi | Coal imports are up 650% as generators stockpile the most polluting fossil fuel ahead of next winter.
Hiringa eyes green methanol plant near Whanganui
29 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Green hydrogen pioneer Hiringa Energy is deep in planning to develop an “eight-to-nine figure” methanol plant near Whanganui, using a combination of biomass and hydrogen produced using renewable energy.
Media round-up
29 Aug 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Changes to road user charges will increase New Zealand's emissions; Climate Change Minister Simon Watts promises better access to hazard data for homeowners; and Kiwis borrow over $1 billion in ‘green loans’ for heat pumps and electric cars.
Will NZ walk away from the Paris Agreement?
20 Dec 2024
By Geoff Bertram | COMMENT: Unless the government can find very cheap offshore mitigation, the temptation to walk away from its Paris Agreement obligations may well be too strong to resist for a coalition government focused on fiscal austerity.
Young activists won a landmark state climate trial. Now they’re challenging Trump’s orders
Thu 18 Sep 2025
Young climate activists and their attorneys who won a landmark global warming trial against the state of Montana are trying to convince a federal judge to block President Donald Trump’s executive orders promoting fossil fuels.
Forest carbon stores massive blind spot - study
4 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Aotearoa New Zealand’s planted forests hold significant deep soil organic carbon — with over half of it stored below 30 cm, and much of it over 1,000 years old.
Govt tweaks offshore energy bill with 'declared areas' model
Wed 17 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government is making changes to the Offshore Renewable Energy Bill to address offshore wind developers' concerns about competing for space with other industries.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
A steady ocean pattern just failed for the first time ever observed
Wed 17 Sep 2025
The failure of the Gulf of Panama’s seasonal upwelling system has left scientists wondering what happens next.
Watts full-throated in National’s support for Paris
10 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts came to this week’s Climate Change and Business Conference with nothing to announce.
Govt resilience plan 'dangerous fantasy' - thinktank
29 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | An independent thinktank, whose members include former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer and multiple academics, is warning that the government’s long-term resilience strategy ignores physical and energy realities and exposes Kiwi households and businesses to systemic failure.
‘Plastic Cup’ competitions are cleaning up rivers in Hungary
1 Sep 2025
Afloat on DIY boats, teams of volunteers have removed over 450 tons of plastic waste from the Danube and its tributaries.
Can certificates solve NZ's heavy vehicle emissions problem?
Thu 18 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Sustainable Business Council has launched a new framework for a national system to cut freight emissions.
Climate change collaboration and competition law
Thu 18 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The revamped competition law regime needs to be able to take into account the benefits of companies that collaborate for action on climate change, says the panel that reviewed both the Commerce Commission and the Commerce Act.
Underestimating support for climate action limits political decision making, study says
8 Sep 2025
Research reveals huge disparity between perceived and actual willingness of public to contribute to fixing climate.
Straterra has a new name: the New Zealand Minerals Council
16 Apr 2025
Media release | Straterra has been renamed as New Zealand Minerals Council, says chief executive Josie Vidal.
One city’s race to ‘solarise everything we possibly can’
Thu 18 Sep 2025
Bordeaux is quickly transforming itself into France’s top solar-powered city, banking on innovations like transparent panels that preserve its historic architecture.
The ozone hole continues to recover thanks to international action
Wed 17 Sep 2025
Media release: World Meteorological Organization (WMO) | The Earth’s protective ozone layer is healing and the ozone hole in 2024 was smaller than in recent years, according to a new report.
Climate groups want UK wealth tax to make super-rich fund sustainable economy
17 Jul 2025
Growing number of campaigners urge government to ensure green investment is not done ‘on backs of the poor’.
Ara Ake backs 13 projects to unlock NZ’s energy flexibility
11 Sep 2025
Media release | Ara Ake has approved over $600,000 in funding from the National Flex Discovery Fund for 13 flexibility service providers (FSPs).
Last minute change to oil and gas legislation over cleanup costs
31 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government is expected to repeal the oil and gas ban today, with a last-minute amendment handing discretionary power to two ministers over the controversial issue of decommissioning.
Most EU carmakers on track to meet emission targets: study
10 Sep 2025
Almost all European carmakers are on track to meet EU emission targets after winning a reprieve this year as electric vehicles (EV) sales pick up, a study showed.
Hotter, longer, more frequent: NZ’s escalating heat risk
26 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Heat extremes in New Zealand will intensify faster than previously thought, according to a new study.
Echo Tech secures growth investment to tackle NZ's e-waste crisis
Mon 15 Sep 2025
Media release | Echo Tech Limited, New Zealand’s leading provider of e-waste recycling and IT asset recovery services, is proud to announce a strategic investment from growth equity firm Altered Capital.
La Niña set to prolong NZ hydro shortfall
9 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With La Niña favouring a drier-than-normal spring across much of the South Island, hydro lakes are unlikely to recover without substantial rain and late snowmelt – keeping national storage levels below average.
Record UK wildfires have burned an area twice the size of Glasgow in 2025
12 Aug 2025
Wildfires have scorched more than 40,000 hectares of land so far this year across the UK – an area more than twice the size of the Scottish city of Glasgow.
Which countries are scaling solar and wind the fastest?
12 Sep 2025
The leaderboard is quite different depending on what metric you look at.
