Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR)

Brookfield, Resolution Join Fund Managers Riding Green Investment Rebound US President Donald Trump may just have dubbed climate change the “greatest con job,” but there’s growing evidence that energy transition investments are enjoying a revival.

“We are in this wonderful moment where both the capital markets and the real economy are actually accelerating their efforts around sustainability and the energy transition,” Aniket Shah, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Glass Lewis to end benchmark voting recommendations on proxy issues Advisory firm will instead begin offering multiple perspectives after criticism over diversity and environmental criteria

Glass Lewis said it would stop issuing single voting positions on proxy issues and instead offer multiple perspectives to clients, after facing criticism from Republicans over diversity and environmental criteria. on.ft.com/4q57fqB

Modelling shows Aussie energy bills could halve by 2050 Modelling by the Grattan Institute shows Australian household energy bills are set to halve by 2050. Read more.

Modelling by the Grattan Institute shows Australian household energy bills are set to halve by 2050 ($3000 down from average $5800 today), leaving policy room for the federal government to cut emissions in the electricity sector without hurting households. esdnews.com.au/modelling-sh...

Big Oil forced to confront some tough choices as 'monster profits' fade into memory A weaker crude price environment is expected to put the industry’s generous shareholder payouts at serious risk over the coming months.

“Over the past few years, oil companies have used buybacks to return cash to investors and prop up share prices. And it’s better to cut buybacks than dividends: For investors, buybacks are gravy, but dividends are the meat,” Williams-Derry told CNBC www.cnbc.com/2025/10/13/b...

Climate investment is only growth opportunity of 21st century, says leading economist Lord Stern says fossil-fuelled growth is futile as the damage it causes ends in economic self-destruction

Investment in climate action is the economic growth story of the 21st century, while growth fuelled by fossil fuels is futile because the damage it causes ends in self-destruction, the economist Nicholas Stern has said. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Gulfstream LNG CEO calls out industry’s “irrational exuberance” - Gas Outlook A flurry of deals at Gastech showed interest in LNG growth. But industry leaders warned that investors will get "squeezed” by oversupply.

A flurry of deals at Gastech indicated interest in the continued expansion of LNG. But even industry leaders warned that “equity investors are going to get squeezed” from oversupply. gasoutlook.com/analysis/gul...

Investor Bulletin: Enhancing Shell’s LNG disclosures - ACCR Investors sent a strong signal to Shell that the quality of its disclosures is out of step with the size of its bet on LNG – now it’s time for the company to respond.

In May, 20.55% of shareholders voted FOR a resolution asking Shell to justify the assumptions behind its LNG growth strategy and explain how these are consistent with its climate commitments - it’s time for the company to respond. www.accr.org.au/insights/inv...

Why Santos is behind your soaring electricity and mortgage costs It was a primary force behind Australia’s inflationary surge, it’s forced businesses either to the wall or to shift offshore, undermined national industry policy and resulted in the loss of countless ...

Submissions are now pouring in and the common factor is that almost everyone – the competition regulator, manufacturers and even some in the gas industry – is pointing the finger at Santos. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...

Santos’ GLNG in firing line as east coast gas remedies loom The gas market review may result in measures that force Santos’ Queensland venture to contribute gas to the local market, which could come at an enormous cost.

Santos’ GLNG gas export venture in Queensland is emerging as likely to be the biggest casualty in the reforms expected from the east coast gas market rules, with one analyst estimating it could face a hit of up to several hundred million dollars a year. www.afr.com/companies/en...

Coral reefs, ice sheets and Amazon rainforest approaching a tipping point due to global heating, report says Unless global heating is reduced to 1.2C ‘as fast as possible’, warm water coral reefs will not remain ‘at any meaningful scale’, a report by 160 scientists from 23 countries warns

The earth has reached its first catastrophic tipping point linked to greenhouse gas emissions, with warm water coral reefs now facing a long-term decline and risking the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people, according to a new report. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Share analysts says the weakness has stemmed from multiple factors: lower commodity prices — with oil falling from $US90 to $US60 per barrel, government policy backflips, the global push to renewables and an uncertain outlook.

Major Australian energy companies are in negative territory. Woodside Energy has fallen 41%, coal producer New Hope Group has dropped 38%, Shell licensee Viva Energy is down 41%, & uranium companies Paladin Energy & Boss Energy have shrunk 19 & 60%, respectively.

An analysis of the nation’s 12-biggest energy stocks — spanning oil, gas, coal, uranium and fuel distribution — has found just one, Deep Yellow, has had decent gains since the ASX 200 Energy Index last hit a multi-year high in September 2023. www.theaustralian.com.au/wealth/asx-e...

An unusual physical climate risk. A swarm of barrel jellyfish were sucked into the cooling system of Western Europe’s largest nuclear power station, shutting down the plant for 10 days. A marine heatwave had triggered the bloom of the jellyfish. assets.bbhub.io/professional...

Oil and gas companies will often claim to be partners in the clean energy transition, when it is politically expedient to do so, but new research finds their actual contributions are marginal. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Why pension funds are still pushing for climate action Long-term asset owners have bucked the financial sector trend of retreat on green goals

The youngest pension contributors won’t retire for another 50 years. Pension fund managers & long-term asset owners have a fiduciary responsibility to protect the interests of beneficiaries for decades - not least by acting against long-term climate risks. on.ft.com/4q2sxFl

The S&P Global Clean Energy Transition Index is outperforming major equity indexes and even gold, as investors respond to soaring demand for renewables needed to power the boom in artificial intelligence.
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Liquified Natural Gas Risks Becoming a Bridge to Nowhere The conventional wisdom says liquified natural gas is the future of energy — bridging the gap between the world abandoning fossil fuels and renewable supplies coming online. But that rosy outlook face...

The cracks in the bridge are appearing.
The LNG market is about to witness its third big wave of increased supply in 20 years. If demand growth is weaker than expected, the only way the market would rebalance is via much lower prices. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...

Australia must ‘have the guts’ to stand up to Japanese companies reselling gas for profit, Husic says Labor backbencher is calling for drastic intervention to secure supplies for the east coast

“Japan cannot continue to bully us on the issue of gas supply when they take our gas and sell it to other countries and make a profit off it. That’s not fair play.” Ed Husic said. www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

TotalEnergies said it will reduce its buybacks from the fourth quarter of this year. BP and Chevron have reduced buybacks this year. Shell has not announced plans for any cuts to its buyback programme. finance.yahoo.com/news/oil-pri...

Watt nears deal with Coalition to finally overhaul environment laws Environment Minister Murray Watt will sit down with his Liberal counterpart Angie Bell today, with quiet optimism in both parties that a deal might soon be struck to finally rewrite Australia's "broke...

Just so we’re clear: Labor is choosing to work with the worst possible party on environmental issues, instead of the Greens and teals who actually want environmental regulation.
And Watt is already admitting it won’t have a climate trigger …

Injecting integrity: aligning the use of offsets in company transition plans with science - ACCR Principles, informed by the best available climate science, to be followed to ensure integrity when using offsets in company transition plans.

You can read our views on the principles, informed by the best available climate science, to be followed to ensure integrity when using offsets in company transition plans www.accr.org.au/research/inj...

Carbon offsets fail to cut global heating due to ‘intractable’ systemic problems, study says Analysis of 25 years of evidence shows most schemes are poor quality and fail to lower emissions

“We must stop expecting carbon offsetting to work at scale,” said Stephen Lezak, a researcher at the University of Oxford’s Smith School. “We have assessed 25 years of evidence and almost everything up until this point has failed.” www.theguardian.com/environment/...

More than 40 Trump administration picks tied directly to oil, gas and coal, analysis shows Report looks at White House nominees and appointees and agencies dictating energy, environment and climate policy

Donald Trump has placed dozens of people with ties to the fossil fuel sector in his administration to dictate energy, environment & climate policy, including more than 40 who have directly worked for oil, gas or coal companies, according to a new report. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Investors sent a strong signal to Shell that the quality of its disclosures is out of step with the size of its bet on LNG – now it’s time for the company to respond. www.accr.org.au/insights/inv...

BHP says growing political interference threatens mining deals Strategy chief Catherine Raw warns that countries’ push to control their natural resources complicates dealmaking

BHP’s strategy chief warned that the “politicisation” of critical minerals is making mining deals more “complicated”, at a time when consolidation in the resources sector is on the upswing. “Some of the very nationalistic tendencies can create friction" on.ft.com/47cb7P8

Renewables overtake coal as world's biggest source of electricity Developing countries lead the historic clean energy charge but the US and EU rely more on fossil fuels than before, a think tank study shows.

Electricity demand is growing around the world but the growth in solar and wind was so strong it met 100% of the extra electricity demand, even helping drive a slight decline in coal and gas use. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Media and political attacks on Australia’s emissions targets ‘straight out of the climate obstruction playbook’, expert says Prof Christian Downie points to the Business Council of Australia and News Corp newspapers as examples of deliberate obstruction

Prof Christian Downie points to the Business Council of Australia and News Corp newspapers as examples of deliberate obstruction. A playbook honed over decades around the world by fossil fuel interests. www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Glencore disclosures raise questions over mining giant’s tax bill The Swiss commodities giant is in line for up to $600 million in government subsidies to keep its struggling Mount Isa copper smelter in Queensland operating.

Glencore, the Swiss commodities giant in line to receive hundreds of millions of dollars in government handouts for its struggling Mount Isa copper smelter, paid below Australia’s corporate tax rate last year. www.afr.com/companies/mi...

Industry warns 'no gas, no future' amid high prices and falling demand A future made in Australia? Not if gas prices keep rising, major manufacturers warn as they call for urgent action to secure affordable supply.

BlueScope Steel chief executive Mark Vassella will warn Australia risks repeating the United Kingdom's industrial decline if the federal government fails to fix the gas market. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...