Why are Canadian pension funds being pressured to invest your retirement savings in risky liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects during a climate crisis? And if these projects are such great investments, why does the government need to help finance them in the first place? LNG projects are long-term financial bets on uncertain markets – and depend on public support to get built. Despite these risks, the government wants more LNG terminals built and is working to use more public financing and policy levers to transfer the risks for pension funds and other institutional investors to the public.

Your pension fund is facing pressure from the federal government to finance so-called major projects “in the national interest”. Several of these projects include risky new fossil fuel infrastructure like liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals and pipelines, which carry unacceptable financial risks, climate and environmental consequences, and lack consent from impacted First Nations and Indigenous communities. Your retirement security is on the line. There is a narrow window to ensure pension funds protect your retirement savings from risky bets on fossil fuels.

Working and retired public servants from across Ontario sent a letter today to their pension manager, the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO), seeking clarity on its confusing policy for restricting and phasing out investments in fossil fuels.

While the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan’s (HOOPP) newly posted 2022 Real Estate Sustainability Report provides expanded disclosure of the fund’s approach to and challenges in real estate decarbonization, it also serves to highlight how little information HOOPP has made available regarding decarbonization of other asset classes.

The Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP)’s new Climate Strategy puts HOOPP in a position to take a major step forward, but a close look at the details demonstrates that these targets are not yet aligned with achieving the goals of the Paris agreement.

If HOOPP outlines how it will address carbon pollution from heating, demonstrates absolute emissions reductions in its real estate scorecard reports, and aligns investing across its portfolio with a strategy for grid decarbonization, then HOOPP’s real estate assets can be a beacon on the way to a climate-safe future.

HOOPP has lagged its peers on climate, but is finally laying the groundwork needed to catch up. Shift Action for Pension Wealth and Planet Health is encouraged to see the fund finally starting to develop and announce pieces of a credible climate strategy.