The £1bn Environment Agency Pension Fund is expected to shortly announce a tender for 3 year emerging market mandate. The amount will be £50m with a 3% above benchmark target.

The principle criteria for evaluating the mandate will be the capacity to deliver good performance. However, the EA considers that environmental performance can contribute to financial performance, and the capacity of fund managers to understand how environment and sustainability impacts on investment will form part of the assessment of tenders. Thus any professional emerging market fund managers with expertise and understanding of environment issues are particularly encouraged to respond.

The mandate iis subject to the formal EU procurement procedures. This means that the Request for Proposals will be published in the Official Journal of the EC (OJEC). It is expected to be published mid/late January. From then applicants will have about 5 weeks to submit. There is then likely to be a second round with full tenders and then interviews ofshort listed candidates, with the mandate being awarded from end June 2006. Applications must be received by the deadline to be considered. Applicants must follow the requirements laid down in the tender. The OJEC website is http://ted.publications.eu.int/official (various ways of finding the tender, but searching on "Bristol" should highlight EA tenders.)

Apllicants may want to familiarise themselves with the various documents the EA has published in the area - the environmental overlay strategy of the EAPF, and various research reports on green penions and the links between environmental and financial performance
http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/aboutus/233207/1025303/?version=1&lang=_e
(look particularly under strategy and key areas of work)