The yearly survey by the Investor Group on Climate Change covers the vast majority of Australia’s institutional capital market.

This year’s data includes 63 superannuation funds, other asset owners and asset managers with more than A$37 trillion AUM globally. Their beneficiaries include more than 15 million Australians.

Super funds and investment managers have a legal duty to act in the best financial interest of their members and have assessed that a fair and fast transition to net zero delivers the best long-term returns. This is not possible without stable, economy-wide and investible policy.

Investors are also increasingly seeing the economic and asset level costs of escalating climate damages. Climate volatility means economic volatility, higher insurance bills, and less profitable companies. Recovery costs mean less money to spend on productive industries, such as health and education.

Key findings:

• Investors are more upbeat and confident about Australian climate policy. Policy and regulatory uncertainty as a barrier to clean economy investment in Australia has fallen dramatically.
• A key policy priority for investors will be government’s sector-by-sector decarbonisation plans (covering energy, transport, resources, and others), and its 2035 emissions target.
• Development of mandatory climate-related disclosures is also gaining increased focus with the implementation of legislated requirements in Australia and around the world over the next 12 months.
• Investors are also seeking investment opportunities in a broad range of technologies and options, notably including many where Australia has comparative advantage, including critical minerals and green hydrogen.
• Nuclear energy is last on the list of technologies that investors are seeking exposure too. Less than 1 in 10 investors are exploring new investments in nuclear energy.