TORONTO and NEW YORK, Dec. 21, 2018 /CNW/ - TD Bank Group (TD) today issued a progress report on advancing towards a transition to a low-carbon economy in North America, a component of its corporate citizenship platform, The Ready Commitment.

In December 2017, TD set a target of a total of CAD $100 billion in low-carbon lending, financing, asset management and internal corporate programs by 2030. TD recognizes that a transition towards a low-carbon economy will likely require a few decades to achieve. Therefore, TD is taking a balanced approach by supporting conventional energy sources that fuel North America's current economic vitality, while investing in low-carbon innovation aimed at helping enable a more inclusive and sustainable tomorrow. 

The progress report quantifies the economic and environmental benefits of the Bank's support of low-carbon initiatives, which are focused on three drivers measured across a range of market sectors:

• Low-carbon power generation;
• Energy efficiency and management; and
• Green infrastructure / sustainable land use.

As set out in this report, the Bank's support of low-carbon initiatives totaled CAD $22 billion in fiscal 2017, the first year of the program. Based on our methodology, these initiatives:

• Supported 51,000 jobs across multiple industry sectors;
• Contributed $8.8 billion to GDP; and
• Reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 611,000 tonnes, offsetting the annual energy consumption of nearly 70,000 North American households.

"Financial institutions can play a central role in helping to achieve a balanced and measured transition towards a low-carbon economy," said Norie Campbell, Group Head, Customer and Colleague Experience, TD Bank Group. "We are proud of our role in job creation, economic growth and environmental progress in North America."

The TD Low-Carbon Report tracks data across key market sectors, such as Auto and Transportation, Energy, Real Estate, Recycling, Sustainable Land Use and Multi Sector. The report's results indicate that market demand is moving to help drive capital flow to industries and initiatives supporting a low-carbon economy in North America and globally through lending, finance and investing. Progress towards this target will be reported annually and the assessment for 2018 is already underway. 

The Bank's support of low-carbon initiatives reflects on and adds to its history of concern for the environment and its ongoing support of low-carbon financing and lending activities.

• TD became the first carbon-neutral bank in North America in 2010.
• It was among the first banks to recognize climate change as a global issue that could significantly impact economic, social and environmental health.
• In 2014, TD became the first Canadian-based bank to issue a green bond.
• TD has been recognized as a top-performing Canadian bank for climate disclosure for the past five years by CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project).
• TD has been listed on the Dow Jones World Sustainability Index since 2014.
• TD is one of 16 global banks participating in a pilot led by the UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative to assess climate-related impacts to business, based on the recommendations from the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures; TD is the only bank to be participating in the lending, investing and insurance pilots.

TD's 2030 low-carbon target is part of The Ready Commitment, the Bank's global corporate citizenship platform, which aspires to help people succeed with confidence in a changing world.

"TD is committed to supporting initiatives that help create a more vibrant planet," said Andrea Barrack, VP Global Corporate Citizenship. "Our low-carbon investments include the planting of 1 million new trees in North America by 2030, and the support of initiatives and events that are designed to help grow and enhance green spaces so people and communities can thrive."

For more information on The Ready Commitment, visit www.td.com/readycommitment.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements 

From time-to-time, the Bank (as defined in this document) makes written and/or oral forward-looking statements, including in this document, in other filings with Canadian regulators or the United States (U.S.) Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and in other communications. In addition, representatives of the Bank may make forward-looking statements orally to analysts, investors, the media, and others. All such statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbour" provisions of, and are intended to be forward-looking statements under, applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation, including the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements made in this document, the Management's Discussion and Analysis ("2018 MD&A") in the Bank's 2018 Annual Report under the heading "Economic Summary and Outlook", for the Canadian Retail, U.S. Retail, and Wholesale Banking segments under headings "Business Outlook and Focus for 2019", and for the Corporate segment, "Focus for 2019", and in other statements regarding the Bank's objectives and priorities for 2019 and beyond and strategies to achieve them, the regulatory environment in which the Bank operates, and the Bank's anticipated financial performance. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as "will", "would", "should", "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "plan", "goal", "target", "may", and "could".

By their very nature, these forward-looking statements require the Bank to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties, general and specific. Especially in light of the uncertainty related to the physical, financial, economic, political, and regulatory environments, such risks and uncertainties – many of which are beyond the Bank's control and the effects of which can be difficult to predict – may cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations expressed in the forward-looking statements. Risk factors that could cause, individually or in the aggregate, such differences include: credit, market (including equity, commodity, foreign exchange, interest rate, and credit spreads), liquidity, operational (including technology and infrastructure), reputational, insurance, strategic, regulatory, legal, environmental, capital adequacy, and other risks. Examples of such risk factors include the general business and economic conditions in the regions in which the Bank operates; the ability of the Bank to execute on long-term and shorter-term strategic priorities, including the successful completion of acquisitions and strategic plans; the ability of the Bank to attract, develop, and retain key executives; disruptions in or attacks (including cyber-attacks) on the Bank's information technology, internet, network access, or other voice or data communications systems or services; the evolution of various types of fraud or other criminal behaviour to which the Bank is exposed; the failure of third parties to comply with their obligations to the Bank or its affiliates, including relating to the care and control of information; the impact of new and changes to, or application of, current laws and regulations, including without limitation tax laws, capital guidelines and liquidity regulatory guidance, and the bank recapitalization "bail-in" regime; exposure related to significant litigation and regulatory matters; increased competition from incumbents and non-traditional competitors, including Fintech and big technology competitors; changes to the Bank's credit ratings; changes in currency and interest rates (including the possibility of negative interest rates); increased funding costs and market volatility due to market illiquidity and competition for funding; critical accounting estimates and changes to accounting standards, policies, and methods used by the Bank; existing and potential international debt crises; and the occurrence of natural and unnatural catastrophic events and claims resulting from such events. The Bank cautions that the preceding list is not exhaustive of all possible risk factors and other factors could also adversely affect the Bank's results. For more detailed information, please refer to the "Risk Factors and Management" section of the 2018 MD&A, as may be updated in subsequently filed quarterly reports to shareholders and news releases (as applicable) related to any events or transactions or events discussed under the heading "Significant and Subsequent Events, and Pending Acquisitions" in the relevant MD&A, which applicable releases may be found on www.td.com. All such factors should be considered carefully, as well as other uncertainties and potential events, and the inherent uncertainty of forward-looking statements, when making decisions with respect to the Bank and the Bank cautions readers not to place undue reliance on the Bank's forward-looking statements.

Material economic assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements contained in this document are set out in the 2018 MD&A under the headings "Economic Summary and Outlook", for the Canadian Retail, U.S. Retail, and Wholesale Banking segments, "Business Outlook and Focus for 2019", and for the Corporate segment, "Focus for 2019", each as may be updated in subsequently filed quarterly reports to shareholders.

Any forward-looking statements contained in this document represent the views of management only as of the date hereof and are presented for the purpose of assisting the Bank's shareholders and analysts in understanding the Bank's financial position, objectives and priorities, and anticipated financial performance as at and for the periods ended on the dates presented, and may not be appropriate for other purposes. The Bank does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time-to-time by or on its behalf, except as required under applicable securities legislation.

About TD Bank Group

The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group ("TD" or the "Bank"). TD is the sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves more than 25 million customers in three key businesses operating in a number of locations in financial centres around the globe: Canadian Retail, including TD Canada Trust, TD Auto Finance Canada, TD Wealth (Canada), TD Direct Investing, and TD Insurance; U.S. Retail, including TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank^®, TD Auto Finance U.S., TD Wealth (U.S.), and an investment in TD Ameritrade; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the world's leading online financial services firms, with more than 12 million active online and mobile customers. TD had CDN$1.3 trillion in assets on October 31, 2018. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

SOURCE TD Bank Group