Last October, a leaked document from Munich Re stated that the reinsurer would no longer provide reinsurance coverage for new oil sands projects. The decision took place as Munich Re and other insurers came under pressure from civil society organisations, notably the Unfriend Coal Coalition, for their involvement in the Trans Mountain Pipeline oil sands project.
If Munich Re refused to confirm the claims at the time, it has done so today. The world’s second largest reinsurer confirms in its latest Corporate Responsibility Report that it will not provide optional insurance for production projects or any infrastructure related to oil sands production. Furthermore, the report states that Munich Re will divest from any company deriving more than 10% of its revenues from oil sands extraction.
The German reinsurer is thus going much further than the French reinsurer: last year, SCOR made a commitment to no longer invest in companies that have more than 30% of their oil sands reserves and made no commitment to no longer provide insurance and reinsurance coverage to the sector.