Leading Nordic pension funds have urged the European Commission not to drop its opposition to new oil and gas development in the Arctic region, warning of the possible irreversible environmental damage.
In an open letter sent today to Commission officials, the funds, including Sampension, KLP, Velliv, P+ and AkademikerPension, wrote: “We note with concern that the EU may reconsider its position on Arctic oil and gas development in the ongoing revision of the EU Arctic Strategy”.
The open letter is signed by 12 financial institutions, also including Danish pension providers Pensam, PBU and Lærernes Pension, along with more than a 100 individuals and organisations.
The letter stated: “Against this backdrop, we urge the European Union to maintain and reinforce its commitment to protect the fragile ecosystems north of the Arctic Circle from new oil and gas infrastructure.”
The EU is currently reviewing its Arctic policy “in light of the new geopolitical and geoeconomic context”, but has reached no conclusions yet, Reuters reported today, citing a European Commission spokesperson.
The signatories to the open letter argued the Arctic was “one of the planet’s most vulnerable ecosystems and home to unique wildlife”, and already under pressure because it was warming “four times faster than the global average”.
Among their arguments, they warned that oil spill simulations for the Wisting field in the Barents Sea had showed only around 7.8% of spilled oil could be recovered in winter.
At Sampension in Copenhagen, Jacob Ehlerth Jørgensen, head of ESG, said the pension fund acknowledged Europe had a greater need for secure energy supply because of the Ukraine and Iran wars.
“But in our view, new oil and gas extraction in the Arctic is the wrong way to go in this regard,” he said.
