SUSTAINABILITY AT BLACKROCK

Investing in the transition to a low-carbon economy

BlackRock serves clients around the world to help them achieve a better financial future, striving to meet their unique needs. As the world shifts to new energy systems, it creates significant investment opportunities and risks for our clients.

 

It is our role to seek optimal returns and outcomes for our clients in line with their investment choices, while managing the risks as effectively as possible.

We're helping our clients navigate the low-carbon transition

The low-carbon transition is reshaping ​production and consumption across regions ​and sectors. It’s affecting how people buy, ​sell, make, and move things. 

We see the transition to a low-carbon economy having implications for macroeconomic trends and portfolios. We are providing clients with the solutions and tools to help them achieve their investment objectives.

To serve our clients, we have 600+ global sustainable and transition specialists focused on providing customized insights, data and a choice of investment solutions and technology tailored to our clients' needs.​

We approach this work solely in service of our clients' best financial interests. That is the foundation upon which we built BlackRock into the most trusted asset manager in the world1 – a total focus on our clients, underpinned by our respect for their diverse preferences and uniqueness.

Why does the low-carbon transition matter for our clients?

Structural shifts associated with the low-carbon transition – technological innovation, consumer and investor preferences for lower-carbon products, and shifts in government policies – are reshaping production and consumption and spurring capital investment.

Our global team of investment and sector specialists, climate scientists, data analysts, and engineers research macroeconomic and investment trends related to the transition, in order to evaluate risks and opportunities and deliver unique insights to clients.

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Three forces are driving this economic transformation, with implications across regions and sectors

 

Three forces are driving this economic transformation, with implications across regions and sectors are technology with a 79% reduction in battery costs (source 2), consumer preferences with a 40% electric vehicle share of global passenger vehicle sales by 2030 (source 3), and policy with upwards of

1 BlackRock is trusted to manage more assets than any other global asset manager, with an AUM of $9.1 trillion as of September 30, 2023.

2 BloombergNEF, Top 10 Energy Storage Trends in 2023

3 BloombergNEF, Electric Vehicle Outlook, June 2022. This figure reflects the report’s Economic Transition Scenario.

4 BII, Rocky Mountain Institute, and European Commission, December 2022. $ figures are shown in USD.

What we’re hearing from clients

Clients are asking for our perspective on the long-term mega forces – including the transition to a low-carbon economy – that will impact portfolios, for analytics that will help them measure and track those forces, and for products across the whole portfolio that will help them capitalize on opportunities to meet their investment objectives.
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56% of global institutional investors expect to increase their allocations to transition strategies over the next 1-3 years

5. BlackRock iResearch Services global survey of 200 institutional investors with US$8.7 trillion of assets. May-June 2023. Survey covered institutional investors’ attitudes, approaches, barriers and opportunities regarding transition investing.

Innovation in action

We visit a range of portfolio companies that are developing innovative solutions that could transform their industries.

Dickon Pinner: Hi, I’m Dickon Pinner.

Carolyn Weinberg: And I’m Carolyn Weinberg, and we’re at the Tuas Port in Singapore. 

TITLE CARD: OUT OF OFFICE by BlackRock

Alvin Foo: We are right at the heart of Tuas Megaport. When completed, Tuas will be the world’s largest fully automated terminal in one singular location1 coupled with innovative cargo solutions and digitalization, we will make the whole supply chain a lot more efficient.

TEXT: When completed in the 2040s, Tuas will be the largest fully automated container port in the world.

1Source: 2021 PSA International Sustainability Report, July 2022

TEXT: The port plans to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 through automation and digitalization.

2Source: 2021 Sustainability at PSA Singapore, July 2022

Carolyn Weinberg: Wow, so this is the nerve center.

Alvin Foo: Exactly. This maps up the real-time status of all our equipment. You can see all the green AGVs there.

Dickon Pinner: Each one of those is one of these little automated trucks.

Alvin Foo: Automated Guided Vehicles.(GFX- AGV=Automated Guided Vehicle)

TEXT: These AGVs use a centralized fleet management system and are guided via Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) ground transponders.

TEXT: Each AGV gets 4 to 6 hours of usage on 20 minutes of charging.

*3 Source: 2021 Sustainability at PSA Singapore report, July 2022

Alvin Foo: We have two pathways to reach our decarbonization goals. One is to look at low-carbon alternatives. The second lever is through pervasive electrification. Every piece of equipment is fully electrified.

Carolyn Weinberg: So 100% of this is electrified.

Alvin Foo: Yeah.

Carolyn Weinberg: The combination of your automation and the digitalization is remarkable.

Dickon Pinner: What do you think other companies can learn from what PSA is doing here?

Alvin Foo: PSA sets very clear goals. We know our emissions level. Through this awareness, we can set very clear goals to reach our targets. Right? But I think what really happens here is the level of innovation we bring to the table. We are willing to share this information with the greater community so they can benefit from the early activities that we undertake to decarbonize our whole supply chain. And we can’t do this alone. We need the whole supply chain partners to come on board.

END CARD: BLACKROCK

Dickon Pinner: Hi, I’m Dickon Pinner.

Carolyn Weinberg: And I’m Carolyn Weinberg, and we’re at the Tuas Port in Singapore. 

TITLE CARD: OUT OF OFFICE by BlackRock

Alvin Foo: We are right at the heart of Tuas Megaport. When completed, Tuas will be the world’s largest fully automated terminal in one singular location1 coupled with innovative cargo solutions and digitalization, we will make the whole supply chain a lot more efficient.

TEXT: When completed in the 2040s, Tuas will be the largest fully automated container port in the world.

1Source: 2021 PSA International Sustainability Report, July 2022

TEXT: The port plans to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 through automation and digitalization.

2Source: 2021 Sustainability at PSA Singapore, July 2022

Carolyn Weinberg: Wow, so this is the nerve center.

Alvin Foo: Exactly. This maps up the real-time status of all our equipment. You can see all the green AGVs there.

Dickon Pinner: Each one of those is one of these little automated trucks.

Alvin Foo: Automated Guided Vehicles.(GFX- AGV=Automated Guided Vehicle)

TEXT: These AGVs use a centralized fleet management system and are guided via Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) ground transponders.

TEXT: Each AGV gets 4 to 6 hours of usage on 20 minutes of charging.

*3 Source: 2021 Sustainability at PSA Singapore report, July 2022

Alvin Foo: We have two pathways to reach our decarbonization goals. One is to look at low-carbon alternatives. The second lever is through pervasive electrification. Every piece of equipment is fully electrified.

Carolyn Weinberg: So 100% of this is electrified.

Alvin Foo: Yeah.

Carolyn Weinberg: The combination of your automation and the digitalization is remarkable.

Dickon Pinner: What do you think other companies can learn from what PSA is doing here?

Alvin Foo: PSA sets very clear goals. We know our emissions level. Through this awareness, we can set very clear goals to reach our targets. Right? But I think what really happens here is the level of innovation we bring to the table. We are willing to share this information with the greater community so they can benefit from the early activities that we undertake to decarbonize our whole supply chain. And we can’t do this alone. We need the whole supply chain partners to come on board.

END CARD: BLACKROCK

Our fiduciary approach to sustainability and the low-carbon transition

As a fiduciary, our approach to investing in this transition is the same as our approach across our platform: we provide choice to our clients; we seek the best risk-adjusted returns within the mandates clients give us; and we underpin our work with research, data, and analytics.
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