What We're Watching in ESG & Impact: A Weekly Newsletter from IPA (04/08/24)

ESG AMD IMPACT UPDATES

???REN21’s Renewables 2024 Global Status Report found 2023’s renewable growth fell behind the needed growth to meet global climate commitments

• Despite renewables growing last year by 36% (473 gigawatts), an annual growth of 1,000 gigawatts is needed to meet global targets. The financial costs of building renewable capacity in developing countries can be five times greater than in bigger economies. China is the only country on track to meet its 2030 target

?? Emissions regulated by the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) decreased by a record-breaking 15.5% in 2023

• The decline is partially due to increased renewable energy?use as power sector pollution fell by 24% in 2023. The ETS scheme charges for licenses to pollute and operates on a cap-and-trade system. It regulates approximately 45% of the EU’s greenhouse gases

?? InfluenceMap’s Carbon Majors report?found 57 fossil fuel and cement producers are responsible for 80% of global CO2 emissions since the Paris Agreement

• The report also found that “58 out of the 100 companies were linked to higher emissions in the seven years after the Paris Agreement than in the same period before”

???France and Brazil announced a joint $1.1b investment plan for the Amazon and rainforests in French Guiana

• The four-year partnership will work towards stopping deforestation in the Amazon by 2030. The announcement comes ahead of Brazil hosting COP30 in 2025

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REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS

???The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stayed the new climate disclosure rules as the?US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit?reviews pending lawsuits

• The SEC announced the pause “will facilitate the orderly judicial resolution of those challenges and allow the court of appeals to focus on deciding the merits”

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IN THE MARKETS

1. Tembo E-LV, a utility vehicle electrification company, will merge with Cactus Acquistion Corp. 1 Limited at an estimated valuation of $838m
2. Quinbrook raised a $600m solar continuation fund led by Blackstone Strategic Partners
3. EV Realty and GreenPoint Partners will form a $200m joint venture for the development of medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicle charging hubs
4. Shermco Industries?acquired Power Test, a provider of electrical testing, maintenance and repair services for power distribution systems and equipment
5. Morgan Stanley Capital Partners acquired Resource Innovations, a provider of energy efficiency and sustainability services