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Legal & General scale up commitment to climate change with investment in low carbon heating
LGIM Real Assets announces that it has provided debt finance to HeatRHIght, a renewables funding scheme that supports the delivery of air source heat pump technology to the social housing sector, on behalf of institutional clients
7 Jan 2021
This long-term financing will accelerate HeatRHIght’s delivery of low carbon heating to Housing Associations across the UK, further demonstrating Legal & General’s commitment to its ESG and decarbonisation agenda.
As an investor, house builder and long term owner, Legal & General is taking action to play its part in addressing the challenge of reducing emissions from the built environment. So whilst the UK recovery gets underway, it is crucial that the opportunity to ‘build back better’ is not lost. The housing sector is a major contributor to carbon emissions, with heating and hot water for UK homes accounting for 25%[1] of total energy use and 15%[2] of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions. If the UK is to meet its climate targets, the housing sector requires some of the most radical and comprehensive overhauls of any industry.
With this long-term financing in HeatRHIght, alongside Legal & General Capital’s corporate investment in ground source heat pump firm Kensa[3], Legal & General has invested in two of the most efficient forms of heating technology using electricity. This presents an immediate opportunity to enable positive change, reducing running costs as well as carbon emissions.
Today, over 23 million homes in Great Britain are using carbon intensive gas as their heating fuel; two million homes electrically heated; and the remaining two million using heating oil or other fossil fuel systems[4]. In their ‘Ten Point Plan’, the UK Government set a target to install 600,000 heat pumps every year by 2028, as part of a bid to ensure homes are greener, warmer and more energy efficient[5]. Both air and ground source heat technology will play a vital role in the UK’s journey to a ‘Green Industrial Revolution’.
Matthew Taylor, Head of Alternative Debt, LGIM Real Assets: "As the UK navigates its way through the fall out of the coronavirus pandemic, future-proofing our society has never been more important. Legal & General is delighted to have made another investment in the low carbon heating space, an area where we intend to increase our exposure in the coming months.As we continue to invest in businesses where we can deliver social and economic good, whilst driving value and offer secure returns, clean energy technology has become an increasingly attractive match for our clients long-term pension commitments."
Bill Hughes, Head of Real Assets, LGIM: "Climate resilience must be embedded into the heart of investment decision making, which under the challenges presented by Covid-19 resonates strongly with the emphasis on “Building Back Better”.As one of the largest managers of real assets in the UK, we have a duty to invest in a more resilient and responsible future. With heating representing such a significant proportion of the UK’s total energy use, investment in the delivery of low carbon heating solutions will play a vital role in how we future proof our society and progress to a net zero carbon future."
Daniel Gardner, Managing Director of HeatRHIght: "We are delighted to have the backing of Legal & General and to be working with such a prominent investor in the social housing sector. Legal & General’s meaningful facility for our renewables funding solution provides capital payments to Registered Providers and Registered Social Landlords, to enable improvements in energy efficiency and a reduction in fuel poverty. Partnering with Legal & General significantly assists our mission to become a leading energy efficiency finance provider to the social housing sector."
- The % of energy can be calculated from data provided in the ECUK release:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/energy-consumption-in-the-uk - The % of carbon can be calculated from data provided in the UK GHG release here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/final-uk-greenhouse-gas-emissions-national-statistics-1990-to-2018
- On 17 April 2020, Legal & General Capital announced that it had taken a 36% stake in The Kensa Group, one of the UK’s largest players in the ground source heat pump technology sector.
- https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Annex-2-Heat-in-UK-Buildings-Today-Committee-on-Climate-Change-October-2016.pdf
- https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-outlines-his-ten-point-plan-for-a-green-industrial-revolution-for-250000-jobs
Further information
Jessye Brandon
Senior PR Executive
LGIM Real Assets
T: 07584498775
Notes to editors
Established in 1836, Legal & General is one of the UK's leading financial services groups and a major global investor, with £1.2 trillion in total assets under management (as at HY24) of which c40% (circa £0.5 trillion) is international.
We have a highly synergistic business model, which continues to drive strong returns. We are a leading international player in Institutional Retirement, in Retail Savings and Protection, and in both public and private markets through our Asset Management division. Across the Group, we are committed to responsible investing and dedicated to serving the long-term savings and investment needs of customers and society.
As at 11 December 2024, Legal & General has a market capitalisation of 13.7 billion.
LGIM is one of Europe’s largest asset managers and a major global investor, with total assets under management of £1.2 trillion1 ($1.5tn, €1.3tn, CHF 1.2tn). We work with a wide range of global clients, including pension schemes, sovereign wealth funds, fund distributors and retail investors.
For more than 50 years, we have built our business through understanding what matters most to our clients and transforming this insight into valuable, accessible investment products and solutions. We provide investment expertise across the full spectrum of asset classes including fixed income, equities, commercial property, and cash. Our capabilities range from index-tracking and active strategies to liquidity management and liability-based risk management solutions.
1Data as at 31 December 2023. Data combines assets under management by LGIM in the UK, LGIMA in the US and LGIM Asia in Hong Kong. Assets under management include securities and derivatives positions.