PRI signatories and IIGCC members call for a robust and predictable EU ETS

The 46 investors, representing more than €12 trillion in assets have called on EU leaders to support a robust and predictable EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), warning that the upcoming review is a critical moment for Europe’s competitiveness, energy security and clean industrial future. The joint statement, published ahead of the EU ETS review in July and the European Council meeting on 18-19 June, urges policymakers to preserve the carbon market as a credible long-term investment signal noting there is a clear financial case for action.

The next phase of the system should strengthen that signal by preserving a clear long-term carbon price signal, supporting cost-effective decarbonisation and giving companies and investors the certainty needed to deploy capital into electrification, industrial transformation and strategic clean technologies.

Investors also call for complementary policies to address the specific barriers facing energy-intensive industries, alongside stronger and more effective use of ETS revenues to support industrial decarbonisation, energy system transformation and a just transition.

Read the press statement and see the full letter with signatories (as of 10 June) below.

Walter Hatak, Head of Responsible Investments at Erste Asset Management: “Institutional investors depend on predictable long-term policy frameworks to allocate capital with confidence. Weakening the EU ETS would increase regulatory uncertainty, dilute the carbon-price signal, and risk penalising companies already investing in electrification, clean industrial processes and low-carbon technologies. Supporting a robust EU ETS is therefore aligned with our fiduciary interests, helping protect diversified portfolios from systemic climate, energy-security and transition-policy risks while improving visibility for real-economy investment.”

Laura Hillis, Managing Director, Responsible Investment at the Church of England Pensions Board: “Climate volatility means economic volatility. As a long-term investor, we know that stable and effective climate policy is essential to fostering investor confidence and economic stability. We know the EU Emissions Trading System is a highly effective tool – so we encourage the European Council to maintain a robust ETS that builds on existing success and ensures Europe remains a great place to invest.”

NZAOA co-chairs Josselin Kalifa, Chief Investment Officer of the Caisse des Dépôts (CDC) Asset Management Division, and Toru Shindo, Chief Investment Officer of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund (UNJSPF): “A robust and predictable EU ETS is not just a climate tool; it’s the foundation on which long-term investment decisions are made. In a period of geopolitical uncertainty, policy stability is the most cost-effective stimulus Europe can offer. The NZAOA urges European leaders to strengthen the ETS as an investment signal that supports competitiveness, energy security, and the clean transition together.”

Eric Christian Pedersen, Head of Responsible Investments, Nordea Asset Management: “The ETS is the world’s most successful carbon market. Its cap-and-trade design drives cost-effective decarbonisation by cutting emissions wherever reductions are cheapest. It also ensures total emissions fall at the lowest overall cost via a long-term rising price signal, which European and Global companies have made literally billions of EUR of investments on the basis of. Removing or weakening this signal now would amount to pulling the rug from under exactly those companies who have shown due diligence and prepared themselves in time, while rewarding laggards with weak strategic governance. What should change however, is that the proceeds from the ETS must be directed more directly towards supporting the deployment of proven technologies that are available now, and to helping companies underwrite those sometimes very chunky investments needed to decarbonise.”

Jacob Ehlerth Jørgensen, Chief ESG Officer & Head of Investment Analysis, Sampension: “Europe’s clean transition is a big investment opportunity, and there is capital ready to be invested – but investors and businesses alike rely on clear and predictable rules as a basis for informed investment decisions. A robust EU ETS is vital for that certainty. A strong, stable carbon price gives companies a clear incentive to invest in electrification, cut emissions, and support new businesses that can drive the transition and boost Europe’s competitiveness. It is not a burden – it is a strategic asset for Europe’s economic resilience.”

Rikke Berg Jacoben, Head of ESG, AkademikerPension: “The EU ETS must remain the backbone of Europe’s climate ambition – with real caps, real reductions, and no backdoors. No free passes for polluters, a robust CBAM, and full alignment with the 2040 and 2050 targets. Anything less is not ambition, it’s delay.”