Activists behind Shell climate verdict target 30 multinationals

* KLM, Ahold, ABN Amro among those to get letters

* Milieudefensie seeks science-aligned net-zero plans

* Warns court an option if companies slow to move

By Anthony Deutsch and Simon Jessop

AMSTERDAM/LONDON, Jan 13 (Reuters) - The Dutch wing of
environmental group Friends of the Earth, which won a landmark
court victory against Royal Dutch Shell last year, is
targeting 30 major corporate emitters in a campaign launched on
Thursday.

Milieudefensie has set its sights on large companies with
legal bases in the Netherlands, where a court ruled in May that
Shell must reduce its environmental footprint.

The heads of the companies were being sent letters demanding
that they provide plans outlining how they will trim emissions
by 45% from 2019 levels by 2030, in line with the Paris climate
accord. A failure to do so may result in legal action, said Peer
de Rijk, policy officer at Milieudefensie.

"We are very clear that in the end, if needed, we are
willing to go to court. But of course we are hoping these
companies will be moving by themselves," De Rijk told Reuters in
an interview.

"We are willing to engage in talks, but we are in a hurry as
well, so we won't accept talks for the sake of talks
themselves," he said. "Climate science is very clear. This is
exactly what is needed. ...There is no choice so they will just
have to."

Shell is appealing against The Hague district court order to
cut emissions in line with the 2015 Paris agreement.

Among leaders in finance, retailers, oil and energy majors,
builders and industrial manufacturers on the list are KLM, the
Dutch arm of airline Air France KLM, ABN Amro bank
and supermarket operator Ahold Delhaize.

"You lead an enterprise with control over and influence on a
substantial amount of CO2 emissions. An enterprise that can and
must contribute to the system change necessary to prevent
dangerous climate change," a draft letter seen by Reuters said,
asking: "Are you a frontrunner or a straggler?"

Some of the businesses are "small in the Netherlands itself,
but they have a very large, international, global impact and the
Shell verdict very clearly states that it is ...possible to hold
them accountable for their global emissions via the Dutch law,"
he said.

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The move by Milieudefensie follows a commitment by countries
to accelerate their emissions reductions at the COP26 climate
talks in Glasgow in November, with investors managing $130
trillion in assets https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/wrapup-politicians-exit-cop26-130tn-worth-financiers-take-stage-2021-11-03
signing up to net-zero and pressuring companies to ensure their
plans are good enough.

The broadening out of Milieudefensie's campaign also comes
against a backdrop of increased climate-related litigation
globally, with more than 1,000 cases brought since 2015 https://www.lse.ac.uk/granthaminstitute/publication/global-trends-in-climate-litigation-2021-snapshot,
research from the London School of Economics showed.

Milieudefensie, which said it had been approached by scores
of concerned companies after the Shell verdict, set a
three-month deadline until April 15 for the companies to present
a climate plan.

They will be used to set an emissions baseline against which
the companies' progress in cutting climate-heating gasses can be
measured, the group said.

KLM said that while it could not comment in detail until it
had formally received the letter, it has committed to aligning
its net-zero pathway with climate science, and planned to use
more sustainable aviation fuel.

An ABN spokesperson said the bank supported efforts to limit
global warming and was working to reduce emissions from its
lending, including by encouraging homeowners to improve the
energy efficiency of their homes and increasing its lending for
renewable energy.

An Ahold spokesperson was not immediately available to
comment.

In addition to targeting companies, Milieudefensie also
called on the government in the Netherlands to enshrine the
Paris accord in Dutch law to ensure corporate compliance.
(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch in Amsterdam and Simon Jessop in
London, Editing by William Maclean)