Financial firms lead shareholder rebellion against ExxonMobil climate change policies
Source: Washington Post
Financial firms lead shareholder rebellion against ExxonMobil climate change policies
By Steven Mufson May 31 at 12:45 PM
ExxonMobil management was defeated Wednesday by a shareholder rebellion over climate change, as investors with 62.3 percent of shares voted to instruct the oil giant to report on the impact of global measures designed to keep climate change to 2 degrees centigrade.
The shareholder rebellion at the ExxonMobil annual meeting in Dallas was led by major financial advisory firms and fund managers who traditionally have played passive roles. Although the identity of voters wasnt disclosed, a source familiar with the vote said that major financial advisory firm BlackRock had cast its shares in opposition to Exxon management and that Vanguard and State Street had likely done the same. All three financial giants have been openly considering casting their votes against management on this key proxy resolution.
The shareholder vote on climate change came on a day when President Trump appeared to be nearing a decision on whether to exit the Paris climate agreement, underlining the deep political and economic divisions over how to deal with the global challenge. Even as the Trump administrations commitment to the climate accord wavered, the Exxon vote showed that climate concerns were gaining ground in the business world.
BlackRock and Vanguard are the biggest shareholders in ExxonMobil, owning 13 percent, or $43.6 billion worth, of the companys stock. State Street Global Advisers, another big financial advisory firm that has called for greater climate disclosures, is close behind with 5.1 percent of the stock. The vote by them against management marked an important step for groups that have been trying to force corporations to adopt greater disclosure and transparency about the financial fallout of climate change. ... BlackRock, which said that climate disclosure is one of its top priorities, had warned on its website that our patience is not infinite.
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Steven Mufson covers energy and other financial matters. Since joining The Post, he has covered the White House, China, economic policy and diplomacy. Follow @StevenMufson.
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http://cdn.exxonmobil.com/~/media/global/files/investor-reports/2017/2017_proxy_statement.pdf
Scroll down to "Item 12 - Report on Impacts of Climate Change Policies" on page 62 of the proxy statement. This is page 64 of the .pdf
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/05/31/exxonmobil-is-trying-to-fend-off-a-shareholder-rebellion-over-climate-change/
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Yay, shareholder activism will save us!
