Top Environmental Fund Sees Japan Key to AI Energy Challenge

Asia’s best-performing environmental fund has increased exposure to Japan as it expects the nation’s technology sector to prove increasingly pivotal in solving the artificial intelligence industry’s surging power demands.

The BNP Paribas Green Tigers Fund has returned 34% year-to-date, fueled by bets on Japanese equities that sit at the core of its stock-selection strategy, said Oscar Yang, senior portfolio manager at Impax Asset Management. The $208 million portfolio was the top-performing “dark green” strategy, the EU’s highest sustainability classification, in Asia through June 30, Bloomberg-compiled data show.

“A lot of the Japanese companies are so unique and they’re to some extent almost at a monopoly position,” Yang said. “If you cut Japanese companies’ products out of your supply chain, you just basically can’t operate, especially for leading-edge capacity.”

Over the past 12 months, Green Tigers has increased its exposure to Japan, Yang said. Tokyo Electron Ltd. and Hoya Corp. are among its top picks. While Japan had the highest allocation at 23.3% as of June 30, followed by Taiwan and China at around 21.1% and 18%, the top ranking tends to shift from month to month.

The intensifying focus on energy efficiency has unlocked a fresh wave of green investing targets across the technology and semiconductor sectors, as electricity use at AI-focused data centers surges. Bloomberg Intelligence forecasts that power consumption driven by artificial intelligence will double by 2030 compared with 2025 levels.

Classified as Article 9 under the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, the fund mandates an explicit sustainable investment objective, targeting areas such as energy efficiency, renewables, and greenhouse-gas reduction.

While renewable energy remains crucial, the portfolio is leaning further into emerging technologies like energy storage, according to Yang. “Technology, especially for AI data centers, is at the center of the environmental challenges,” Yang said.

Tokyo Electron, whose shares have soared more than 90% this year, has been at the forefront of energy-saving technology, according to Yang. For example, its chip-making equipment enables manufacturers to produce advanced semiconductors that are smaller in size and therefore consume less electricity, he said.

Outside of Japan, the fund also has positions in chip-makers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and South Korea’s SK Hynix Inc.

Read: Top Energy Fund Likes Japan Stocks That Power AI Efficiently

Still, the broader AI rally faces growing skepticism as stretched valuations stoke chatter of a potential bubble. TSMC recently sparked a global selloff in chip stocks after results missed high expectations, reigniting concerns over rising costs. High valuations prompted the fund to trim positions in memory chipmakers and component suppliers like multi-layer ceramic capacitor makers, according to Yang.

Yang says the region still has many opportunities. “Asia in general is seeing a trend of moving up the value-add curve in technology markets,” he said. “From pure follower to now, in some certain areas, they have become a leader.”