Investec’s latest climate-related disclosure report reveals a significant calculation error in its previous report, resulting in a severe underestimation of the carbon emissions in its 2021 loan book.
- The error primarily affected the aviation sector, with the corrected emissions for the sector being a thousand times greater than initially reported.
- Investec acknowledges the mistake and emphasizes its commitment to transparency and learning from the error, given the complexity of calculating emissions across different asset classes.
- The expanded scope of climate disclosures now includes high-net-worth client loans in commercial and residential real estate, leading to a restatement of figures and a significant increase in total scope 3 financed emissions for the year to end-March 2021.
- Investec’s scope 3 financed emissions for the year to end-March 2023 rose by 9.8% due to increased loan growth, resulting in higher total emissions.
- The bank’s latest climate disclosures show that over half of its energy lending portfolio consists of renewables, with a significant decline in fossil fuel loan exposure.
- Investec aims to have zero thermal coal in its loan book by end-March 2030 and plans to cease financing new oil and gas extraction, exploration, or production from January 2035.
- The restated figures highlight the challenges financial institutions face in reporting climate and sustainability metrics, suggesting the need for increased resources for compiling disclosure reports.