This week RE100 company Goldman Sachs, the US investment bank, announced a total of $150 billion in investments in clean energy projects over the next ten years.
This significant increase on its previous target of $40 billion, set in 2012, marks the ten year milestone of the company’s Environmental Policy Framework. The framework, established in 2005, has already seen a total investment of $37 billion by Goldman Sachs to date and will make them the first US bank to achieve carbon neutral operations and business travel by the end of 2015.
“Environmental issues have become increasingly relevant to our clients and our investors, and have become core to our business,” said Kyung-Ah Park, Head of Goldman Sachs Environmental Markets. “We are leveraging the talents of our people and the breadth of our businesses to facilitate the transition to a low-carbon future and promote sustainable economic growth.”
The framework announces green investments in Goldman Sachs’ own operations as well as funding for partnerships with focuses on clean energy, carbon policy and energy efficiency.
With UN global climate negotiations in Paris just a few weeks away, this announcement comes at an important time. Goldman Sachs is showing strong support for a low carbon economy by making a long term investment into renewable energy, and signalling for governments to agree on ambitious climate policies.
Goldman Sachs joined RE100 during Climate Week NYC this year and has a target to be 100% powered by renewable electricity by 2020. Read our case study where Kyung-Ah Park delves deeper into Goldman Sachs’ journey to reach this target and the expected benefits for the business.
RE100 Campaign Director Emily Farnworth said: “This new pledge demonstrates that Goldman Sachs understands the impact its investments can have in boosting the renewable energy industry. It is a bold announcement and shows commitment to putting values into action that will inspire other businesses to deliver on their targets.”