On May 21, the news broke that the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) had quietly abandoned its commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050. But CPPIB’s abandonment of its net-zero commitment should perhaps come as no surprise– because it was never credible anyway. For years, Shift has meticulously documented how the actions and investment decisions of CPPIB and its privately-owned fossil fuel companies are expanding and prolonging the use of oil and gas. In retrospect, the writing was on the wall.

Last week, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) quietly abandoned its 2022 commitment to invest the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) in line with achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. The unacceptable abdication of responsibility by CPPIB stands in stark contrast to other Canadian pension giants, six of which released annual reports this year that unambiguously confirmed that they remain committed to net-zero by 2050. Many of CPPIB’s largest pension peers in other countries also remain committed to net-zero.

Today, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board abandoned its commitment to invest the Canada Pension Plan in line with achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, first announced in February 2022. This is an unacceptable abdication of responsibility from the people responsible for managing the collective retirement savings of more than 22 million Canadians.

Against the backdrop of a worsening climate crisis, President Trump is promising to massively expand fossil fuels and launch a devastating trade war on Canadian companies, all while threatening to annex Canada. But apparently the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) doesn’t see this as a problem. As Canada’s survival depends on confronting the climate crisis and diversifying trade away from the U.S., the CEO of CPPIB-backed VoltaGrid is praising Trump’s “drill, baby drill” agenda, donating money to the Republican Party, courting the U.S.’s biggest fossil fuel producers and tech giants, and aggressively expanding gas-fired power to run data centres.

CPPIB executives disclosed to Canadians at its public meetings that 3.5% of its portfolio – approximately $22.6 billion – is invested in fossil fuels. This is likely an underestimate that omits CPPIB’s significant holdings in fossil fuel private equity, gas and electric utilities and other fossil fuel infrastructure. Following CPPIB’s release of its Second Quarter Fiscal 2025 results in November, Shift calculated that CPPIB has committed at least $3.3 billion of Canadians’ retirement savings in new oil, gas, coal and pipeline assets in 2024.

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) is risking Canada's national retirement fund on risky, expensive, ineffective carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects that prolong the use of fossil fuels. The Alberta Carbon Trunk Line is a prime example. This week, the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) released a report arguing that the profitability and sustainability of CCS facilities in Alberta are threatened by cost increases and failing to live up to projected emissions reductions. 

Over the last month, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) held public meetings in eight cities across Canada. These CPPIB meetings, which happen once every two years, are a rare opportunity to engage directly with the staff and executives that manage the $647-billion Canada Pension Plan on behalf of over 22 million contributors and beneficiaries.

In a risky bet on climate failure, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has just announced its fifth investment in private fossil fuel assets this year. The CPPIB is investing $1.2 billion in Denver-based Tallgrass Energy, which operates over 16,000 kilometres of oil and gas pipelines across 14 states.

A company privately owned by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) announced this morning that it’s spending CA$6.2 billion to increase its oil production by 60%. Ongoing, reckless investment in fossil fuel expansion by Civitas Resources (Civitas) makes a mockery of the CPPIB’s net-zero emissions commitment and gambles the retirement savings of millions of Canadians on climate failure. 

CPP Investments (CPP) has taken an important step today in recognizing that the long-term success of our national retirement fund is directly linked to addressing the climate crisis. While Shift is relieved to see the CPP finally catch up with its peers in making this essential net-zero commitment, the fund does not yet have a credible plan for achieving it and decarbonizing its significant fossil fuel assets.