Bank of the West to no longer support oil, gas, coal exploration or production
Will terminate all financing and investing activities relating to tobacco product manufacturers
by Pinedale Online!
August 5, 2018
Bank of the West has announced they will no longer do business with companies whose main activity is exploring, producing, distributing, marketing or trading oil and gas from shale and/or tar sands, and will no longer finance coal mines or coal fired power plants that are not actively involved in energy transition to other sustainable energy sources.
Bank of the West is a financial services company based out of San Francisco, California. It is a subsidiary of the French company, BNP Paribas. It has more than 600 branches and offices in the Midwest and Western United States.
According to their website: "We’re investing where we feel we can make the most impact, like advancing diversity and women entrepreneurship programs, financing for more small businesses, promoting programs for sustainable energy, and withdrawing support from companies and business activities that are detrimental to our environment and our health. As a long-term partner of the energy industry, we are proud to work with companies in oil, coal and gas that are actively involved in the energy transition and committed to building a more sustainable energy future. "
To this end, Bank of the West has made the following decisions:
• We will no longer do business with companies whose main activity is exploring, producing, distributing, marketing or trading oil and gas from shale and/or tar sands.
• We will never finance oil and gas exploration or production projects in the Arctic.
• We will no longer finance coal mines or coal-fired power plants that are not actively involved in the energy transition.
• We will terminate all financing and investing activities relating to tobacco product manufacturers, as well as producers, wholesalers and traders whose revenue comes primarily from tobacco.
"As the bank for a changing world, we’re continually seeking to improve the ways we help our customers, while contributing to more sustainable and equitable growth," their website stated.
Their website goes on to discuss how they and their parent company, BNP Paribas, is taking real action for positive change in the world. These include financing for a positive social impact, building support for renewable energy, taking action to accelerate energy transition, transform culture through corporate social responsibility, ending relationships with tobacco companies, and more.
In Wyoming, Bank of the West has branches in Big Piney, Casper, Cheyenne, Cody, Evanston, Gillette, Green River, Jackson, Kemmerer, Laramie, Rawlins, Rock Springs, Saratoga, Sheridan, and Worland.
Click on this link to read more on their website:
https://blog.bankofthewest.com/change/?icid=brand_about_change
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