Ceres Asks SEC To Review Oil Company Reporting

The investor group Ceres asked the SEC to scrutinize the alleged failure of oil companies to disclose carbon asset risk by oil companies. An April 17, 2015 letter from Ceres on behalf of investors representing more than $1.9 trillion in assets under management specifically requests the SEC to issue comments asking issuers to "address reduced demand scenarios, risks associated with capital expenditures on high cost unconventional resource projects and associated stranded asset risks."

While the letter is a continuation of efforts by some investors to obtain disclosure of more information related to climate change and sustainability, it also signals a departure from previous general requests to the SEC because it identifies three issuers that the investors want the SEC to give special scrutiny. The main complaint by the investors is that the SEC filings by these three oil companies do not discuss future scenarios where hydrocarbon demand goes down and how these