Pictet: Riskier to invest in coal than wind energy

Campanale says government global warming targets are making coal a risky investment.

Government global warming targets make coal a far riskier investment than clean energy, according to Pictet’s Mark Campanale.

The director of four elements capital at Pictet said owing to the targets it is more risky to buy into coal, because at some point in the “next 10-20 years there will be a collapse in the valuation of fossils fuels”.

Speaking at Investment Week’s Climate Change Investment Conference, Campanale said government agreements to prevent global warming from rising two degrees warming above current levels make clean energy a wise choice.

“If you burn every fossil fuel listed on the London Stock Exchange, then we are going to go into six degrees warming,” he added.

He said despite turmoil for global markets, investors are still allocating to clean energy. There is new money flowing into thematic portfolios, particularly those invested in timber and agriculture.

“Forestry has become an institutionalised market place. I think timber investment is a great idea, particularly with population growth and growing demands for paper, board and timber products.

“If you have been allocating to UK timber you will have seen the value of your portfolio rise over the past two years by around 20%. It is a great diversifier and it has the fantastic benefits of biological growth.”