Sims attracts retirement fund as major shareholder

A mid-October filing with the Australian Securities Exchange indicates the Australian Retirement Trust Pty Ltd. (ART) now owns a 5.006 percent voting share stake in global metals and electronics recycling company Sims Ltd.

With more than 9.6 million shares held, the retirement fund is now obligated to file notices when it buys additional shares or sells shares, according to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

On its website, the ART describes itself as “one of Australia’s largest super funds” that uses its “size and scale to be a force for good to make our members’ world better, working with the community and seeking out investments to grow their savings and retirement income.”

The ART claims to manage more than AUD$300 billion ($201 billion) on behalf of some 2.4 million people attached to or formerly attached to some 185,000 employers.

Sims Ltd., based in Sydney, operates metal recycling facilities in Australia and New Zealand and electronics recycling facilities there as well as in Europe and the United States.

Although the company recently sold its metals recycling assets in the United Kingdom, the firm’s American metals recycling business unit combined with its 50 percent stake in U.S.-based SA Recycling represents its largest holdings.

Regarding its sustainability credentials, Sims Ltd. calls it “the core” of its business, writing on its website it strives to “create a world without waste to preserve our planet. For more than 100 years, Sims Ltd. has been at the center of the circular economy by recovering and recycling products and materials to generate maximum value and minimize waste.”

The ART, regarding its sustainability approach, says on its website, “Investing for the long term includes managing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks, like climate change, today.”