JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Today, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced he joined a coalition of 11 states in suing the largest international investors, BlackRock, State Street Corporation and Vanguard Group, for using illegal means and anticompetitive practices to artificially constrict the market for coal.
“I will not stand idly by while major companies unlawfully hamper energy production and raise prices for Missouri consumers,” said Attorney General Bailey. “My office will always protect consumers from those weaponizing industries to satisfy their radical agenda.”
Over several years, the three asset managers acquired substantial stockholdings in every significant publicly held coal producer in the United States, thereby gaining the power to control the policies of the coal companies. Using their combined influence over the coal market, the investment cartel collectively announced in 2021 their commitment to weaponize their shares to pressure the coal companies to accommodate “green energy” goals. To achieve this, the investment companies pushed to reduce coal output by more than half by 2030.
Blackrock, Vanguard, and State Street utilized the Climate Action 100 and the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative to signal their mutual intent to reduce the output of thermal coal, which predictably increased the cost of electricity for Americans across the United States.
These firms also deceived thousands of investors who elected to invest in non-ESG funds to maximize their profits. Yet these funds pursued ESG strategies notwithstanding the defendants’ representations to the contrary.
In the suit, the attorneys general assert that the companies deliberately and artificially constricted supply to increase prices, which enabled them to produce extraordinary revenue gains. This conspiracy violated multiple federal laws that prevent a major shareholder, or a group of shareholders, from using their shares to lessen competition or engaging in other anticompetitive schemes.
In addition to Missouri, attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Texas, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
The lawsuit can be read here.