Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) warned Shell stakeholders on Saturday to vote against a climate activist resolution that has been introduced by the firm while still admitting that it does notice the merits of the proposal.
Shell investors are set to vote on a resolution on May 23 filed by the Follow This Activist shareholder group that calls on the company to align itself in practice with the 2015 Paris Climate deal.
Following scientists’ claims that the world needs to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 43%, Shell is committed to cutting the intensity of planet-warming gases across its portfolio by 20% in 2030 and by 100% in 2050.
Currently, Shell is against setting absolute emissions cuts targets. Unlike absolute targets, intensity emissions targets enable companies to continue or increase their fossil fuel output so long as the proportion of renewable energy and biofuels in its product mix increases.
The ISS, like Shell itself, has advised stakeholders to vote against the Follow This Activist resolution, stating that while it accepts the aim of the resolution, it would “represent a change in strategy from the one that Shell has adopted”.