Industries in transition
Making the financial sector drive the green transition in carbon-intensive industries.
The Nordic Center for Sustainable Finance works to shift carbon polluting industries toward climate neutrality by engaging financial institutions as powerful levers for change. Our work with the steel and heavy-duty vehicle sectors demonstrates how financial influence, strategic ownership, and public pressure can accelerate industrial decarbonization in line with climate science.
Decarbonizing steel and trucks through finance
Steel accounts for 7-9% of global greenhouse gas emissions because most producers still rely on highly emitting blast furnaces and so-called metallurgical coal to fuel their steel production. With more than 70% of existing blast furnaces reaching the end of their lifetime before 2030, the coming years are crucial. Either companies can invest in extensive renovations, that will prolong coal-based production for decades, or they can invest in green steel production. We’re mobilizing Nordic financial institutions, including pension funds and sovereign wealth funds, to accelerate the steel sector’s transformation toward fossil-free production methods.
Similarly, we work to mobilize Nordic institutional investors to align the transport sector with climate targets, with a particular focus on the electrification of heavy-duty trucks, which must accelerate rapidly. While electric car sales are climbing, electric trucks still make up less than 2% of global sales. This is far from the one-third needed by 2030 under the International Energy Agency’s Net Zero Scenario. No European truck manufacturer is currently moving fast enough, and the sector lacks a clear climate frontrunner.
We work to change this by mobilizing financial institutions to use their leverage, through shareholdings, bonds, loans, and underwriting, to push manufacturers toward full electrification. Our goal is to make leading truck producers set bolder targets, align lobbying practices with climate science, and phase out combustion technologies.
By coordinating action across Nordic investors and banks, we aim to raise climate ambitions in the heavy-duty vehicles sector and push for a faster transition towards zero-emission heavy-duty transport. We aim for Nordic investors and banks to push for credible electrification frontrunners among heavy-duty truck manufacturers, that can help trigger a race to the top.
Our impact: Stewardship with teeth
We support financial institutions in stepping up their engagement with heavy-duty vehicle manufacturers and steelmakers by providing the relevant information and analysis, setting clear decarbonization asks and timelines for reaching the tasks. Too often, dialogues stretch over years without impact, so we also help investors coordinate action and design stewardship plans that include meaningful escalation measures.
RESOURCES
investor brief: Need for ambitious climate action at AccelorMittal & Nippon Steel
October 2025
The steel industry forms the backbone of production, construction, and infrastructure. At the same time, no industry has higher CO₂ emissions, as steel accounts for about 11% of global CO₂ emissions and 7-9% of all global greenhouse gas emissions. 90% of these emissions stem from the use of coal in blast furnaces. It is already possible to produce steel without coal today, but the transition is currently moving too slowly. Without further action, the steel industry risks depleting 23% of the world’s carbon budget for 2030-2050. In this brief, the Nordic Center for Sustainable Finance recommends engaging ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel and offers advice on how to get started. As the world's second- and fourth-largest steel producers - and the two largest ones outside of China - these companies have a significant impact on the direction of the industry and whether the transition succeeds. Unfortunately, both companies are lagging behind.
Investor brief: Decarbonization of Volvo Trucks
April 2025
The climate impact of trucks is largely overlooked by the financial sector. Yet, trucks are a major climate pollutant, and the sector is only transitioning slowly, far behind passenger cars. This is however about to change. The truck market is expected to see a rapid shift from sales of diesel to batteries, presenting a major business opportunity, but also a significant risk for truck manufacturers. For investors, it is high time to consider if investee truck manufacturers are aligned with the incoming changes. In this brief, the Nordic Center for Sustainable Finance recommends engaging Volvo Trucks and offers advice on how to get started, as NCSF believes that investor engagement could effectively contribute to a battery-electric transformation of Volvo.