Several BHP Group shareholders urged the mining giant to suspend its membership in Australian coal lobby groups such as the Minerals Council of Australia and Coal21, as they contradict the company's pledges to cut emissions, Reuters reported Sept. 4.
The Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility, or ACCR, the Church of England Pensions Board, Australian billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes' Grok Ventures, and other institutional investors — collectively holding about A$140 billion under management — filed a resolution calling for BHP to act on the matter ahead of this year's annual meetings in London and Sydney, the report said.
"ACCR has met with BHP on multiple occasions, and we have given them a long list of examples of adverse climate lobbying by their industry associations," the association's Executive Director Brynn O'Brien said, adding the lobby groups' oppositional advocacy on climate issues is "especially acute" in Australia.
Further, the ACCR said the industry groups made repeated calls for policies favoring the use of coal, including government stipends for coal-fired power plants and the advancement of new thermal coal operations in Queensland.
Previously, BHP said it will invest US$400 million over five years to develop technologies to cut greenhouse gas emissions from its operations as well as those generated from the use of its resources.
The mining giant also said it will establish a new medium-term, science-based target that will meet standards set by the Paris Agreement on climate change. This is on top of BHP's short-term goal to cap emissions at 2017 levels by 2022 and its long-term goal of achieving net-zero emissions by mid-century.
In 2017, the ACCR pushed for a similar resolution that resulted in BHP reviewing its membership in over 20 industry association and severed ties with the World Coal Association.
A Bloomberg News report in July bared that BHP will proceed with a plan to exit thermal coal as it explores divestment options for the business that includes assets in Australia and Colombia.
