National Bank of Canada | Acquisition of Canadian Western Bank and decarbonisation at National Bank of Canada

Status
Withdrawn
AGM date
Previous AGM date
Proposal number
6
Resolution details
Company ticker
NA:CN
Lead filer
Mouvement d'éducation et de défense des actionnaires (MÉDAC)
Resolution ask
Report on or disclose
ESG theme
  • Environment
  • Governance
ESG sub-theme
  • GHG targets / emissions
Type of vote
Shareholder proposal
Filer type
Shareholder
Company sector
Financials
Company HQ country
Canada
Resolved clause
"Given that the Bank is already well-positioned to finance energy projects in Alberta, it is
proposed that the Bank disclose the actions it intends to take to offset the impact of this
acquisition on its environmental and sustainable performance."
Supporting statement
"At the 2022 Annual Meeting, the President announced that he wanted to reduce the carbon intensity
of oil and gas loans by 31% by 2030(1) compared to the 2019 reference year. This target is for scope
1, 2 and 3 emissions, which means that the target also takes into account the combustion of oil by
end users, such as households and businesses.
While we wanted these targets to be more ambitious, we wish to express our concern about achieving
these targets in the context of this acquisition(2). Referring to a publication by the Ministère de
l’économie, de l’innovation et de l’énergie(3) which refers to an article by the Forum on Corporate
Governance at Harvard Law School(4):
“Environmental, social and governance (ESG) due diligence is now indispensable for
M&A transactions... ESG assessments would be crucial not only to mitigate risk but
also to preserve and enhance deal value.”
The objective of this proposal is therefore to inform shareholders and stakeholders about the impact
of this acquisition on the Bank’s carbon neutrality, diversity and sustainable development objectives.”"

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