Irish Life Investment Managers
Irish Life Investment Managers (“ILIM”) is a global investment management firm and part of the Great-West Lifeco group of companies. They joined the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative in September 2022 and made their Initial Target Disclosure in January 2024.
Percentage of assets covered by the Net Zero Asset Managers Commitment Statement
20% of total AUM (USD $23.76 billion)
Information on interim target(s) covering the proportion of assets to be managed in line with net zero
Baseline(s):
Portfolio coverage baseline
Baseline performance for alignment status will be calculated individually for each investment strategy. The baseline figures for material sectors will be disclosed once we gather the relevant data we need for this assessment, which at the moment is insufficient for the 2019-2020 period. As of December 2021, which is the earliest data point we have, approximately 40% of ILIM’s total financed emissions were aligned with the Paris Agreement, and 10-20% of our exposure to High Impact Sectors are estimated to have been aligned, aligning, or committed to be aligned.
Portfolio decarbonisation reference baseline
2019 WACI (tC02e/$mn Scope 1+2): Active equity funds: 354.4; Emerging market equity funds: 296.9; Global equity funds: 196.5; Developed market equity funds: 183; Corporate fixed income funds: 179.5
Engagement threshold baseline
ILIM’s overall engagement efforts (active + passive) currently cover over 60% of combined Scope 1 + 2 financed emissions.
Target(s):
Portfolio coverage target
ILIM is working on gathering sufficient data to accurately assess the alignment status of companies in material sectors. At the moment, these figures are being used internally to guide stewardship strategies which prioritize unaligned companies in those sectors.
ILIM is looking to set a 2030 target once the data is available.
Portfolio decarbonisation reference target
25% reduction in Weighted Average Carbon Intensity (WACI)
Engagement threshold target
70% of committed AUM financed emissions by 2025, and 90% by 2030 to be aligned or aligning to a Net Zero pathway, or subject to direct or collaborative engagement.
Portfolio coverage target
ILIM is working on gathering sufficient data to accurately assess the alignment status of companies in material sectors. At the moment, these figures are being used internally to guide stewardship strategies which prioritize unaligned companies in those sectors.
Portfolio decarbonisation reference target
50% reduction in WACI
GHG scopes included:
Our targets are guided primarily by Scope 1 & 2 emissions data, given their larger coverage and reliability, which enables a more accurate measurement against targets. Data for Scope 3 emissions is currently being assessed internally and is used to guide some of ILIM’s Net Zero strategies, including stewardship activities. Scope 3 emissions will be gradually phased-in and become fully embedded into our targets once these datasets allow for a more reliable and comprehensive measurement.
Methodology:
Net Zero Investment Framework
Scenario(s):
The decarbonization targets are based on the minimum requirements from the IPCC special report on 1.5-degrees with a 2025 interim target to help keep us in line with a 50% decarbonization by 2030
Additional information
Proportion of AUM committed:
As set out in ILIM’s Climate Pledge in September 2022, ILIM has initially committed circa 20% of total assets under management (AUM) to Net Zero across Discretionary Equity, Corporate Fixed Income and Property assets. As an institutional asset manager, ILIM has a significant proportion of assets in client directed mandates, where the investment strategy is subject to the agreed mandate determined by our institutional clients. We will work proactively with clients and partners to gradually increase the proportion of in-scope assets to 100% by 2050 and look to review this target in the future. Additionally, as more defined methodologies emerges around assets currently excluded from our commitment, we will also seek to include these assets in our NZAM commitment
Policy on coal and other fossil fuel investments:
For all proprietary strategies, ILIM has a coal exclusion policy targeting any companies in the investable universe which derive revenue from thermal coal above permissible thresholds: >10% for extraction activities and >25% for power generation. ILIM’s exclusion policy also includes unconventional fossil fuels, targeting companies with over 10% of revenue derived from tar sands and Arctic oil and gas. Additionally, ILIM considers fossil fuel exposure as one of the primary metrics within the Brown Revenue step of the tilting process, during portfolio allocation. ILIM is currently working to align these policies with a more robust science-based approach, taking global phase-out goals into consideration.