Media Contact: Hiske Arts, +31644822846, [email protected]
Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Today the Dutch pension giant PFZW, one of the top ten pension providers in the world, failed to align its financial operation with a safe and liveable climate for all. This disappointing announcement comes just months after a decision from ABP, another huge Dutch pension company, to quit fossil fuels following a successful campaign from pension members and activists. It is likely that PFZW will now experience increased pressure from climate activists.
Hiske Arts, Dutch climate campaigner at Fossielvrij NL said: “While we welcome PFZW’s commitment to 1.5°C degrees, we are concerned that the pledge is hollow as long as they continue to provide fossil fuel corporations with their support. We are afraid PFZW will fall for the greenwashing of fossil fuel companies, while the facts speak for themselves.
For decades, fossil fuel companies have chosen to delay, deceive and postpone actions that bring them into alignment with agreed science. The decision today by PFZW gives them at least two more years to continue with this kind of destructive behaviour. PFZW is trying to fool the public, but it is fooling itself.
Take oil giant Total for example: this French oil corporation spends a lot of money to convince the public that it is committed to limiting global heating by no more than 1.5C degrees – but it is pushing hard to build the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline. This would be a carbon bomb and devastate communities and nature across Tanzania and Uganda.
If this pension fund takes climate action seriously, it must act now and draw a hard line. If a fossil company starts new fossil projects – and they all do – it must be ruled out of their portfolio today.”