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Dutch insurer Aegon to reduce coal investments

FILE PHOTO: The head office of Dutch financial insurance company Aegon is seen in The Hague, October 28, 2008. REUTERS/Stringer

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch insurer Aegon on Monday said it will gradually reduce holdings in companies generating revenue from coal-fired power plants, or coal mining, to support the transition toward a low-carbon economy.

Aegon said it already excludes companies that derive more than 30% of sales from the exploration, mining, and refining of thermal coal.

It will scale back those investments over the next decade.

“As of 2020, a declining revenue threshold has been introduced, which will be lowered in steps to 5% or below in 2029,” it said in a statement.

The Dutch insurer, with more than 300 billion in managed assets at the end of 2018, said it will cease investing in companies who own more than 10 gigawatts of coal-fired electricity generation capacity and have plans to extend their capacity.

Aegon will cease to invest in companies producing more than 20 million tonnes of thermal coal annually, and are expanding coal-related business, it said.

Aegon did not specify which investments would be impacted.

Reporting by Anthony Deutsch, editing by Louise Heavens

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