Danish investors support resolution on Arctic oil production at Nordea Bank

At least three Danish institutional investors have backed a shareholder resolution urging Nordea, the largest bank in the Nordic region, to stop financing companies that seek to expand Arctic oil and gas production, citing environmental risk.

Danish pension funds Akademiker, Sampension, and Velliv disclosed their intended votes ahead of the bank’s annual shareholder meeting on Tuesday.

The aggressive resolution comes amid an oil shock triggered by the Iran conflict, and as Norway announced plans to increase drilling activities in its Arctic offshore areas.

The resolution targets Norwegian energy companies Equinor, Aker BP, and Var Energi, which are involved in exploration and drilling in the Arctic region.

“High environmental risk”

The resolution urges Nordea to align with its Nordic competitors Danske Bank, Swedbank, Handelsbanken, Nykredit, and OP Financial Group by stopping loans to companies expanding oil and gas activities north of the Arctic Circle.

Catarine Ehrenhús, a senior adviser at the Nordic Sustainable Finance Center and one of the drafters of the proposal, said: “The fragile Arctic ecosystem is in danger of becoming a new hub for Norway’s oil and gas production.”

Nordea said it does not specifically provide financing for oil and gas expansion or Arctic drilling, but it will continue to fund some companies.

In an email statement, the bank said: “We continue to support a small number of carefully selected companies that play an important role in ensuring Europe’s energy supply is affordable and secure.”

Nordea is one of 19 banks involved in providing a $5 billion revolving credit facility to Equinor. In its debt report, Equinor said the facility would serve as “back-up financing for the Group’s borrowing in the US commercial paper market.”

Ulrа Benediktsdottir, responsible investment director at Velliv, said the key is to target new expansion projects rather than existing supply, which she believes is important for Europe’s energy security.

She said: “Arctic exploration involves high environmental risk, long time horizons, and significant stranded-asset risk in a market where Europe’s oil and gas demand is expected to decline.”

Sampension said it will vote in favor of the resolution because “the company does not appear to provide shareholders with sufficiently transparent information about its activities related to financing fossil-fuel expansion.”

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