FRNW vs ICLN

FRNWAFidelity Clean Energy ETF

ICLNAiShares Global Clean Energy ETF

In short

FRNW Fidelity wrote its own clean energy index, then priced the fund at 0.39% a year, matching the category's cheapest heavyweights and undercutting most rivals. Roughly 60 global stocks: solar, wind, and the grid gear behind them.

ICLN The big, global way to own the energy transition: since 2008, ICLN has tracked roughly 100 clean-power companies across developed and emerging markets, charging 0.38% a year, below the typical clean-energy fee.

Stated mandate

FRNW The fund seeks returns that generally track the Fidelity Clean Energy Index before fees and expenses.

ICLN The fund seeks to track an index representing global equities in the clean energy sector.

Why people hold it

• FRNW 0.39% a year ties the low-cost leader of the group (ICLN) and comes in under CNRG at 0.45% and FAN at 0.61%. In a theme where fees often run higher, that is real money kept.
• Global by mandate, not US-only. The index reaches clean energy companies worldwide, so the fund follows the industry rather than one country's subsidy calendar.
• A plain index fund, not a stock-picking bet: it aims to track the Fidelity Clean Energy Index before fees, so what you own is spelled out in the methodology.
• One of the stronger builds in a crowded clean energy shelf on our review, with the low fee and a spread-out portfolio doing the heavy lifting. Pays quarterly.

• ICLN At 0.38% with no waiver propping it up, it undercuts FRNW (0.39%) and CNRG (0.45%) and sits below the category median fee.
• Global by design: the S&P index draws from developed and emerging markets, so you get Europe's wind and grid names, not just US solar.blackrock.com
• Liquidity is built into the rules. Index entrants need $300M market cap and $3M median daily trading, and the fund itself trades very actively.blackrock.com
• A multi-billion-dollar iShares fund running since 2008, and one of the strongest implementations in its peer group.

Worth knowing

• FRNW One theme, one industry. Clean energy names swing with interest rates, policy shifts, and equipment prices, so the ride is far choppier than a broad market fund.
• Roughly 60 stocks. That is focused enough that a handful of names and a couple of countries carry real weight in the outcome.
• Not one of the giants. A mid-size asset base and moderate trading activity can mean wider bid-ask spreads than the category's most heavily traded funds.

• ICLN One theme, about 100 stocks. Renewable developers and utilities are capital-intensive, so interest-rate moves land hard here.spglobal.com
• Emerging-market listings come with the global reach, adding currency and local-market risk.blackrock.com
• Weights blend float market cap with a clean-energy exposure score, so some holdings are partial players, not pure plays.spglobal.comblackrock.com

Full FRNW profile⁠

Full ICLN profile⁠