European insurance companies are still investing billions of euros in dirty coal power plants, despite pledges to stop supporting the industry.
Six insurance giants including Axa, Generali, and Allianz have around €1.3 billion invested in Poland’s coal power plants — the dirtiest form of power production — through subsidiary businesses such as pension funds, research by campaign group Unfriend Coal has found.
One of the six companies, Aviva, has over 30 million customers in the UK, and is the second largest investor in Polish coal — with €421 million invested in the industry. A previous DeSmog UK investigation revealed the company also continues to invest in tar sands companies through its subsidiaries.
