Friday, August 30, 2013

Some text relevant to fossil fuel divestment

These words from a solar energy crowdfunding entrepreneur resonate strongly with the arguments made by Divest Harvard in support of Harvard University's divestiture of its fossil fuel-based investments:

From Why Is Solar Energy A Good Investment? By Billy Parish


Second, our investments hedge against the increasingly systemic risks facing fossil fuels. Energy is the world’s largest industry, and so it should come as no surprise that energy investments make up a large chunk of the portfolios of institutional and individual investors alike. Global energy markets have experienced major swings for fossil fuel prices in recent years — oil, for instance, running up two historic price peaks with a crash in between, or gas plummeting in cost, and now rapidly rising — and it’s only going to get worse. In particular, we think it’s important for investors to understand that fossil fuel companies are betting against action on climate change. HSBC recently warned that the top 200 fossil fuel companies could see a 40-60% decline in their equity value if governments take action to curb climate change. Mosaic investments represent a way to start moving away from fossil fuels before the bubble bursts.



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