The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and the Ontario Municipal Employees’ Retirement System are investing US$400 million in emerging market energy transition debt.
The new investment commitment, which also includes Ninety One Ltd., the U.K.’s Legal and General Investment Management and the Wiltshire Pension Fund, will focus energy transition efforts across emerging markets, specifically clean infrastructure, clean technology and decarbonization, according to a press release.
The investment was developed through a collaboration between the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Investor Leadership Network — which also includes the Alberta Investment Management Corp., the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board — to push for increased flows of institutional capital into emerging markets over a three-year span.
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In the release, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen said the investment commitments are part of advancing energy transition priorities from the White House. “We are optimistic that all these efforts will lead an increasing number of investors to explore new opportunities in emerging markets, driving economic growth and dynamism.”
Marc-André Blanchard, the Caisse’s executive vice-president and global head of sustainability and co-chair of the Investor Leadership Network, said institutional investors have a leadership role to play in these opportunities.
“Aligned with our goal to deploy constructive capital to decarbonize the global economy, this initiative — alongside the U.S. Treasury and ILN — demonstrates [the Caisse’s] desire to actively participate in the energy transition and to have an enduring impact.”