QWhat’s more exciting than selling overpriced jewelry to old millionaires? Shake up global capitalism! In any case, this is what Francesco Trapani thought, who, after having sold the great Italian jeweler Bulgari to LVMH, participated in the creation of one of the most moving investment funds in Europe: Bluebell Capital . Based in London and led by two finance veterans, Giuseppe Bivona and Marco Taricco, this troublemaker rose to prominence by toppling Danone boss Emmanuel Faber in March, then attacking Vivendi, Solvay and GSK.
This time the victim is called Glencore, one of the biggest mining companies in the world. In a letter sent on November 8 to its leaders, the troublemakers ask the firm to part with its coal assets, of which it is the world’s leading exporter for power plants. Wrapping themselves in their fresh conversion to the climate cause, they believe that this activity is “Morally unacceptable and financially wrong”.
In this, they follow the recommendations of the last United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), in Glasgow, which designated coal as the enemy to be destroyed in order to save the planet. On its own, it emits 40% of greenhouse gases, and its extraction in the only Hail Creek mine, owned by Glencore in eastern Australia, emits so much methane that it is equivalent to pollution each year. of 4 million American cars.
Scientists have been clear
The international mobilization against “King coal”, the “king coal”, offers a weighty argument to the activists of Bluebell. Now, companies active in this field are ostracized by investors. More and more funds follow that of Norway which excluded from its portfolio all assets of this type. MM. Bivona and Taricco state in their letter that without the coal assets, the Glencore share price would be 40% higher. Moreover, rivals Rio Tinto and Anglo American have announced their intention to withdraw completely from this market.
The mining company listens with interest, but stresses that if he sold these assets it wouldn’t change the planet because other owners would continue to sell him. Indeed, as long as there is a worldwide demand, and in these times of scarcity it is considerable, there will be suppliers, even if they no longer go through the Stock Exchange. Moreover, the price of coal explodes at the end of 2021, the profits of Glencore will be spectacular and the dividends too. Coal turns into gold, which does not encourage its abandonment.
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