UK-based Wiltshire Pension Fund has handed Lombard Odier Investment Management (LOIM) a mandate to manage the equities portion of its Climate Opportunities (Clops) portfolio. The money will go into LOIM’s Planetary Transition fund, an active equities strategy that invests in companies that are driving the transition to net zero and dealing with other environmental issues such as ocean health and biodiversity loss. It is based on the ‘planetary boundaries’ framework developed by Johan Rockström and colleagues at the Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University in Sweden. The framework posits certain environmental thresholds must not be breached in order to create a “safe operating space for humanity”. As of 2023, six of those nine thresholds had been breached. LOIM’s Planetary Transition fund aims to invest in 40 to 50 companies, in areas including electrification, food systems, nature restoration and the circular economy. The fund “seeks to deliver compelling active returns by selecting companies that will benefit as the net zero transition unfolds in areas such as climate and nature”, said Ritesh Bamania, Head of UK Institutional Sales and Global Consultant Relations at LOIM. Jennifer Devine, Head of Wiltshire Pension Fund, said she believed the strategy was “a great fit for Clops, aligning well with our investment philosophy”. She added: “Lombard Odier’s use of planetary boundaries, system roadmaps and deep investment research will ensure Wiltshire Pension Fund is invested in companies that are driving the transition to net zero while providing sustainable investment returns.”
