Of the 29 power companies that Climate Action 100+ assessed in an Oct. 17 report card, 22 had reduced their greenhouse gas emissions intensity over the past three years. But fewer than half were on track to do so in line with their climate goals, the report said.

Climate Action 100+, the largest investor initiative of its kind, also reported bringing in 90 new signatories since June 2023 for a net gain of 19. The growth comes despite a steady exodus of large US financial firms after Republicans said the initiative might violate antitrust laws and threatened legal action. More than half of the new members are based in Europe and five are from the US, a spokesperson for the network said in an email.

The Climate Action 100+ global network tracks 168 companies worldwide in 15 sectors with large carbon footprints to help investors reduce their exposure to climate risks. The US companies the firms engage with include large electric utilities such as Duke Energy Corp., the Southern Co. and Exelon Corp. as well as oil majors like Chevron Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp.

The 2024 report was the first time the benchmarks included emissions intensity. In the power sector, the term refers to the amount of carbon emitted for each kilowatt-hour of electricity produced, as opposed to absolute emissions.

While investors are gradually moving corporations to address their dependence on fossil fuels and other climate-related financial risks, the momentum is too slow, executives said. For example, just two North American and one European utilities had set more ambitious goals to phase out their reliance on coal, the network reported.

"More must be done and there's no time to waste," Michael Cohen, COO of the California pension fund CalPERS and chair of the Climate Action 100+ steering committee, said in a statement.