Germany, Hanover May 2, 2023 – Talanx, a major German insurance group which operates globally, has adopted new restrictions on oil and gas. New oil and gas fields will no longer be insured as of July 1, 2023. New oil power plants and new infrastructure directly associated with new oil fields will also be excluded. Talanx is the 15th major insurer to adopt restrictions on conventional oil and gas.
“These commitments by Talanx Group are welcome and demonstrate continued momentum by major insurers to stop insuring new oil and gas fields. It is now the turn of other insurers including SCOR, Travelers and the Lloyd’s of London insurance market, to announce even stricter oil and gas exclusions at their forthcoming AGMs later this month.”
Talanx’s new policy, along with the oil and gas restrictions which US insurer Chubb announced in March, demonstrates that in spite of the anti-ESG crusade of US climate deniers, the shift of insurers away from oil and gas continues and is in the industry’s best long-term interest.
The policy does not however exclude new gas infrastructure and new gas-fired power plants. Additionally, an exemption to the policy is possible for new gas fields in countries with a high proportion of coal in the energy mix and insufficient access to renewable energies.
"Talanx's new fossil fuel policy shows insurance companies begin to embrace the demands of climate science - even independent of membership in the Net Zero Insurance Alliance. Overall, however, the industry is not going far enough. The elephant in the room is gas infrastructure, in particular. Insurers are not yet adequately addressing that aspect in their policies and all insurers urgently need to make improvements in this area."
"The exclusion of new gas fields indicates Talanx general recognition of gas as a climate killer, but its refusal to address new gas infrastructure should not be tolerated. LNG Terminals can lead to worse emissions than coal and lock us into unnecessary contracts for decades that poison frontline communities and drive global climate change. Gas expansion can also doom countries like South Africa to switch from one climate killer to another."
Talanx is a major German insurance groups which operates globally. It published the policy today in its latest sustainability report ahead of its AGM. According to data commissioned by Insure Our Future Talanx is the world’s 20th largest property & casualty insurer.
