Norway SWF Excludes Two Taiwanese Manufacturers and Page Industries to Exclusion List
Posted on 08/31/2020
Norges Bank is the overseer of Norway Government Pension Fund Global. Norges Bank’s Executive Board follows the decisions were made based on recommendations from the Council on Ethics.
According to the press release, “Norges Bank’s Executive Board has decided to exclude the companies Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp, Formosa Taffeta Co Ltd and Page Industries Ltd because of unacceptable risk for violation of human rights, ref. section 3, subsection a, of the guidelines. The Council on Ethics recommended to exclude Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp and Formosa Taffeta Co Ltd because of alleged human rights violations related to textile production in Vietnam and Page Industries Ltd due to alleged human rights violations related to textile production in India.
In addition, the Executive Board has decided to follow the company PetroChina Ltd’s work on anti-corruption as part of the fund’s active ownership efforts over a period of three years. The Council on Ethics has recommended to exclude the company. According to the guidelines, Norges Bank shall consider whether other measures, including the exercise of ownership rights, may be more suited to reduce the risk of continued norm violations, or whether such alternative measures may be more appropriate for other reasons. The Executive Board concludes that active ownership in this case is more suitable. The company has been under observation since 2017 following a recommendation from the Council on Ethics in 2016 to exclude the company. The Executive Board agrees with the Council on Ethics that observation no longer seems to be the appropriate action as the company is not responding to enquires from the Council. The Executive Board considers active ownership an alternative. The fund has regular dialogue with companies on anti-corruption issues, and can benefit from that experience in a dialogue with PetroChina Co Ltd.”
Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corporation is a Taiwan-based company principally engaged in the manufacture and sale of chemical products. Formosa Taffeta Co Ltd is a Taiwan-based company mainly engaged in the manufacture and sale of textile products, as well as the operation of gas stations. Page Industries is a publicly listed company, which is the licensee of Jockey International and Speedo in India and Sri Lanka.