We are aligning our oil and gas business to our net-zero commitment

Taking our net-zero by 2050 commitment seriously means taking steps to decarbonise now. In 2018, we already communicated how we deal with coal as the largest greenhouse gas (GHG) emitter and how we transition out of that sector. Oil and gas are the other two key man-made sources of GHG emissions. Based on new scientific evidence from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the International Energy Agency (IEA) we are now also taking stronger measures in the oil and gas sector.

Concretely, this means that we set ourselves the ambition that by 2025, half of our oil and gas premiums from individual re/insurance covers are to come from companies that are aligned with net zero, as per the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi) or a comparable, credible third-party assessment. By 2030, Swiss Re's oil and gas re/insurance portfolios will only contain companies that are aligned with net zero by mid-century. For our treaty business we are developing an oil and gas approach by 2023.

Furthermore, we will no longer individually re/insure or directly invest in new oil and gas field projects. This will become effective after 2022 and once the SBTi or a comparable third-party assessment have issued guidance on science-based target setting for the upstream oil and gas sector. This does not affect our short-term support of supply expansion from existing fields (incl. shale) that may be needed to adapt to changing demand patterns quickly.

In the mid and long term, we will not support the developments of new oil and gas fields. We will only make exceptions for projects of companies that are fully aligned with net-zero emissions by 2050, as defined by the SBTi or a comparable third-party assessment. We continue to partner with all companies on projects that have a positive impact on climate change mitigation, such as renewable energy production or carbon storage services.

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