This thematic ETF tracks the CIBC Atlas Clean Energy Index and diversifies across US and Canadian companies in the renewable energy and clean technology sectors.

It suits thematic investors who want long-term exposure to the growth of the clean energy and renewable energy industries.

It is a passively managed (index tracking) ETF run by Alps.

The fund holds US and Canadian renewable energy and clean technology companies selected through a rules-based method, and invests most of its net assets in the constituents of the underlying index. As a non-diversified fund, it may carry relatively high weightings in specific holdings.

• Broad exposure to the clean energy value chain, spanning solar, wind and energy storage
• North America-wide coverage that includes Canada-listed companies as well as US-listed ones

Assets under management (AUM) stand at $90.2M, and the total expense ratio is 0.55% per year.

Compared with peer clean energy thematic ETFs such as QCLN and NBET, it differs in holdings composition and asset size.

The fund has been volatile, driven by expectations for renewable energy policy and shifts in the interest rate environment, and short-term swings tend to be pronounced around earnings announcements for solar and wind stocks.

Fund flows tend to fluctuate sharply with investor sentiment toward the clean energy theme, and interest often concentrates when policy issues or interest rate trends come into focus.

Its strength is broad diversification across the clean energy value chain, but its high sensitivity to policy and interest rates makes it fairly volatile.

The QCLN and NBET shown in the table are comparable products covering the same clean energy and energy transition theme, though their holdings composition and fund managers differ. There are also other alternatives, including ICLN, which invests across global clean energy, TAN, which focuses on solar, FAN, which specializes in wind, and the QCLN family of products tracking broader clean technology indexes, so you can narrow your choices based on sub-theme weightings.

Here are the points to review before investing in ACES. Given the nature of a renewable energy thematic ETF, you should first understand policy changes and the interest rate environment, and also check the concentration of holdings and the level of volatility.

Policy changes and the interest rate environment are the main drivers of short-term volatility, and because of the non-diversified structure, issues at a specific holding can significantly affect overall performance. Given the strong thematic nature of the fund, you should also keep in mind the possibility of sharp swings as market sentiment shifts.

It is a suitable choice for thematic investors who want long-term exposure to the renewable energy industry as a whole. If you want to focus more on a specific sub-theme, you can also consider TAN and FAN, and if you want global exposure, ICLN is worth reviewing as well.