BlackRock Gets Glimmer of Hope It Could Escape Texas Blacklist

(Bloomberg) — Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick offered a sliver of hope to BlackRock Inc. that it may be eventually removed from the state’s list of oil boycotters.

The move came Thursday when Patrick laid out his wish-list for the state’s senate to study ahead of the 2025 legislative session.

Texas’ second-most powerful official instructed the senate’s State Affairs Committee to examine how a financial firm can be removed from the state’s list of so-called energy boycotters. BlackRock was put on the list in 2022, which was created by Comptroller Glenn Hegar, in accordance with a Republican-backed law the year before.

Patrick doesn’t specifically mention BlackRock in his list of charges, but they are the most prominent US-based institution on the boycott list, which is primarily made up of European financial companies. Inclusion on the list restricts state entities like pension funds from investing in the companies.

The announcement comes just two months after BlackRock Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink traveled to Houston to take the stage with Patrick for a power grid investment summit. There, Patrick lauded Fink as the “king of Wall Street” and noted that his firm does invest in fossil fuels. It was an about-face for Patrick, who had pushed for the Republican-backed law.

Opening Remarks At The Texas Power Grid Investment Summit

Patrick’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for BlackRock did not have an immediate comment.

Patrick’s list of interim legislative charges says that lawmakers should consider the implementation of the legislation known as Senate Bill 13.

“Specifically, examine how a company is removed from the list of companies that boycott energy companies when the company ceases to boycott energy companies,” according to a state document outlining his priorities dated April 11.

He also charged the committee with reporting on how frequently the list is updated and to make recommendations to ensure the ongoing list is accurate. To be sure, the legislative session is months away and priorities are fluid, especially in an election year.

The move is a welcome development for BlackRock, especially after a state fund announced in March that it would divest $8.5 billion from the company in a move the asset manager called “reckless.”

Texas helped make BlackRock public enemy No. 1 among Republicans across the US who sought to make environmental, social and governance, or ESG, investing part of their political culture wars.

But Texas’ electric grid is so vulnerable that Patrick has shown more willingness to work with BlackRock — a top infrastructure financier — to induce investment to shore it up. “BlackRock has been a big investor in the fossil fuel industry, but it wasn’t the perception,” Patrick said at the summit in February.

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