Pressure from anti-coal activists highlights investment dilemmas

As companies rid themselves of coal-related assets and other elements that are linked to the fuel, Intelligent Insurer looks at the reasons behind this—and the potential implications for other investment decisions.

Coal. For some it’s a four-letter dirty word that represents fossil fuels at their worst; for others, it’s an old and familiar source of energy that has been mined for centuries.

The world is increasingly leaning towards the first camp and away from the second. Coal is being shunned as being a contributor to global climate change, as well as a major pollutant in its own right.

As a result many companies, ranging from investment banks to insurance companies, are divesting themselves of investments or business activities that are coal-related, with the latter also refusing to re/insure assets that are directly involved in the coal industry, such as mines.