PILLA R S O F

PO L LU T I O N
ia’s b ig f o ur banks
al
How Austr p pollution
p p in g u
are pro

www.greenpeace.org.au
PILLA R S O F
PO L L U T I O N
Australia has some of the most abundant sources of Australia’s banks must stop pouring
clean energy in the world. With the right investment and
supportive policies, we could quickly become a clean energy our money into polluting coal power
powerhouse, creating jobs and boosting the economy while and redirect it to pollution-free, clean
cleaning up our environment. energy solutions.
Unfortunately, the big four banks are pouring money –
your savings – into the most polluting form of power: coal.
Burning coal is the single biggest contributor to global Our coal Dependence
warming. Global warming threatens the safety of our planet,
our health and our future. With everything we know about global warming and the clean
energy technologies available, you would think that coal would
The first step to a clean energy future is be on the way out. Shamefully, the exact opposite is true.
to stop building new coal power stations. A lack of political courage by state and federal governments
in Australia has meant the expansion of the coal industry
In Australia, the big four retail banks, ANZ, National, has continued unchecked.
Commonwealth and Westpac, are the biggest providers There are plans on the books for twelve new dirty coal
of finance to the coal industry.i They invest billions of dollars power stations around Australia. If built, they would increase
in coal mining, coal power stations and coal exports, Australia’s total emissions by 7 per cent.
while promoting an image of community responsibility
and environmental sustainability. Financing the coal industry Australia is already one of the worst carbon polluters
is fuelling pollution and making global warming worse. per person in the world and it’s because most of our
The impacts of climate change are being felt throughout electricity comes from coal power stations. Our power
Australia and the Pacific region, home to the banks’ stations are among the world’s dirtiest, with only eight
customers. Australia needs to undergo a clean energy countries having more pollution-intensive electricity
revolution, and the big banks have a vital role to play. than we do.ii
To become responsible corporate citizens, ANZ, National, While Australia becomes
Commonwealth and Westpac need to stop financing more dependent on coal
polluting coal projects and instead shift investment we are endangering our
to renewable energy. The banks have the power to help us health, polluting the air
achieve the vision of making clean energy bigger and cheaper and dirtying the water.
through financing large-scale solar, geothermal, wind, ocean We are also hampering
and other clean energy technologies. Australia’s economic
competitiveness as other
Instead, the banks are focusing their efforts on attempting
countries move ahead
to look green, ignoring the huge environmental impacts
in the clean energy race.
caused by the coal projects they finance. ace/Murph
y
©Greenpe

The Dirty Dozen - new coal power stations proposed for Australia
Project Name State Size in mega Estimated emissions Company
watts Tonnes CO2-e per year
Mt Piper NSW 2,000 MW 10,470,000 Delta Electricity (NSW Gov)
Bayswater NSW 2,000 MW 12,428,000 Macquarie Generation (NSW Gov)
Coolimba WA 450 MW 3,800,000 Aviva
Bluewaters 3 WA 208 MW 1,500,000 Griffin Energy
Bluewaters 4 WA 208 MW 1,500,000 Griffin Energy
Zero Gen QLD 380 MW 930,000 Zerogen (QLD Gov)
Galilee Phase 1 QLD 450 MW 2,345,000 Galilee Power
Galilee Phase 2 QLD 450 MW 2,345,000 Galilee Power
Wandoan QLD 400 MW 643,000 Stanwell & GE
Arckaringa SA 560 MW 2,943,000 Altona Energy
Hybrid Energy SA 40 MW 196,000 Strike Energy / Hybrid Energy
HRL VIC 550 MW 4,000,000 HRL

1 Pillars of Pollution
Dirty money
Our addiction to coal is not a cheap habit. Digging up
and burning this energy source is an expensive operation.
It can cost several billion dollars to build a new coal power
station – more than most energy companies can raise
on their own. This is where the big banks come in.
ANZ, National, Commonwealth and Westpac – Australia’s
largest retail banks – are also the biggest providers
of finance to the coal industry.iii Banks lend most of the
cost of building a new power station. About three quarters
of the costs will usually be financed from a large consortium
of banks providing a syndicated loan. For large projects,
up to twenty different banks can be involved but there
is always at least one bank acting as ‘lead arranger’
or ‘bookrunner’ to pull the whole deal together.
Energy companies must also find equity investors
to fund up to one quarter of the project.
/Murphy
©Greenpeace
If you bank with one of the big four,
your money is being used to finance the
expansion of the polluting coal industry,
making global warming worse.
The role of the big four banks is crucial for the financing of coal
power stations in Australia. If ANZ, National, Commonwealth
and Westpac all refused to finance new coal, it would
significantly increase the risk and cost of these projects.
International banks would also be less likely to get involved,
making it more difficult, more expensive and less likely that
coal power stations are built.
©Greenpe
ace/Hunt
Financing pollution - the Breakdown
Greenpeace commissioned a specialist finance research ANZ is the biggest financier of coal
group, Profundo, to determine who has been the biggest
financier of coal in Australia over the last five years. power stations and coal mines,
The results have confirmed that all four big banks
while Commonwealth is the biggest
are heavily invested in the coal industry. financier of coal export ports.

Finance of Coal Power Stations Finance of Coal Ports

La La
700 $650 st 700 st
600 5 ye 600
5 ye
$535
ar ar
500 $454 s 500 $440
s
A$ Million

A$ Million
$382
400 400
$309
300 300
$220
200 200
100 100
$– $– $– $– $–
0 0
Z

BC

BC

U
AN

CB

NA

EC
BE

AN

CB

NA

EC
BE
W

W
M

M
Finance of Coal Mining Total Coal Finance
La La
st st
800 $727 5 ye
2000 5 ye
700 $633 ar ar
s s
600 1500
A$ Million

A$ Million

500
$402
400 $350 1000
300
200 500
100 $– $–
0 0
Z

BC

BC

U
AN

CB

NA

EC
BE

AN

CB

NA

EC
BE
W

W
M

coal power stations coal ports coal mining

ANZ – Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited NAB – National Australia Bank Limited
CBA – Commonwealth Bank of Australia (including Bankwest) BEN – Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited
WBC – Westpac Banking Corporation (including St. George) MECU – mecu Limited

Major banks such as ANZ and Westpac have happily

Spinning sustainability accepted sustainability awards while continuing to
invest hundreds of millions of dollars into polluting coal
Despite their large-scale investment in polluting power, power stations.
the big four banks all make concerted efforts to paint Despite their green rhetoric,
a different public image. none of the banks have ruled
Almost all of the big banks promote their policies to go out financing new polluting
‘carbon neutral’ or to reduce the greenhouse footprint of their coal power stations, making
operations. What they’re more reluctant to highlight is the part their continued greenwash
of their business that has by far the biggest environmental a triumph of spin over
impact – their lending practices. There is little point installing substance.
efficient light bulbs while continuing to finance the expansion
of the coal industry.

3 Pillars of Pollution
©Greenpeace/Murphy
Spin or substance?
BANK SPIN
ANZ Policy & public statements:
• ‘In May 2007, ANZ announced our objective to become
carbon neutral in Australia and New Zealand by the end
of 2009.’ iv
• ‘ANZ has committed to fund only new projects that can
be developed and operated according to sound social
and environmental standards.’ v
Awards:
• Dow Jones Sustainability Index – ANZ assessed as No.1
bank globally on corporate sustainability performance.
• Carbon Disclosure Project Leadership Index.
CBA Policy & public statements:
• ‘We recognise that our organisation has both a direct
and indirect impact on the environment and believe that
managing these impacts is an important aspect of sound
business management.’ vi
• ‘We aim to build a sustainable future and contribute
to a better environment for all Australians.’ vii
NAB Policy & public statements:
• ‘We are committed to making a contribution to the
sustainability of our planet by reducing both our direct
and indirect environmental impacts.’
• ‘We are leading by example to reduce our carbon
footprint and make our operations carbon neutral
by September 2010.’ viii
Awards:
• Listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index.
• Climate Disclosure Project Global Leadership Index.
Westpac Policy & public statements:
• ‘Westpac is committed to responsibly managing both
our direct and indirect environmental impacts.’ ix
• ‘We factor environmental considerations into our
investment and lending decisions and adhere to the
Equator Principles in managing environmental and social
risk in project finance.’ x
Awards:
• Ranked as one of world’s most ethical companies
by Ethisphere.
• Gold award for Climate Leadership – Money Magazine’s
‘Best of the Best’ awards.
©Greenpeace/Pratten/Arnold
SUBSTANCE
• Invested $650 million in polluting coal power
stations in Australia in the last 5 years.
• Invested $727 million in coal mining in Australia
in the last 5 years.
• A lead arranger of finance for Bluewaters II,
the most recent coal power station built
in Australia.
• Invested $535 million in polluting coal power
stations in Australia in the last 5 years.
• Invested $402 million in coal mining in Australia
in the last 5 years.
• Invested $440 million in coal ports in Australia
in the last 5 years.
• Owns a 2 per cent equity share in Hazelwood
– one of Australia’s dirtiest power station.
• Invested $382 million dollars in polluting coal
power stations in Australia in the last 5 years.
• Invested $633 million dollars in coal mining
in Australia in the last 5 years.
• A lead arranger for finance of Bluewaters II,
the most recent new coal power station.
• NAB’s investment arm, National Nominees Ltd,
is the largest shareholder in Aviva Corporation.
Aviva’s projects include the proposed new
Coolimba coal power station in WA.
• Invested $454 million in polluting coal power
stations in Australia in the last five years.
• Invested $354 million in coal mining in Australia
in the last five years.
• Invested $220 million into coal ports in Australia
in the last five years.
• Co-manager of finance of Bluewaters II,
the most recent new coal power station built
in Australia.
©Greenpeace/Alcock
 How can banks be part of the solution?

In Australia, while the big four ba

nks
all provide finance for renewable
energy projects, the vast major
ity
of their investments are in coal.

©Greenpe
ace/Lang
rock

ce/Murphy
©Greenpea

We have a choice about the kind of world we live in
today and what kind of world we leave for our children
tomorrow. Greenpeace has laid out a vision for an
Australian Energy [R]evolution xi showing how our society
and economy can be powered by renewable energy.
Modelling commissioned by Greenpeace has revealed that it is
technically and physically possible for all of Australia’s polluting
coal power stations to be replaced with a combination of
seven renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency
measures over the next decade.
Last year, for the first time, more money was invested globally
in renewable energy than in fossil fuels. Wind, solar and other
clean technologies attracted US $140 billion compared
with US$110 billion for gas and coal power xii. This trend
looks set to continue and is an important signal that an
energy revolution is underway. However, despite the positive
developments, the transition is not happening quickly enough
to avert a climate catastrophe.
According to the Profundo research, over the last five years
Australia’s big banks have invested over $5 billion into mining,
transporting and burning coal and only $0.78 billion into
renewable energy.

Renewable Energy vs Total Coal Investments La

st
5 ye
total coal investments renewable energy ar
s
$276 $77 $290 $140
A$ Million

$1686 $1417 $1024 $1015

ANZ Commonwealth Bank Westpac NAB

5 Pillars of Pollution
 ment
For real progress, ending invest
in new coal power is vital.
While all the banks have a credit policy to guide their
investments, at the time of writing none of the big four banks
have a clear public policy that would stop them investing
in new coal power stations. Yet socially responsible policies
are not new for banks. Some have policies to not invest in
companies that make cluster bombs; others refuse to invest
in brothels, or in nuclear power stations. In 2008, the big
four Australian banks all agreed to not provide finance
to the controversial Gunns Pulp Mill in Tasmania.
ce/Rezac
©Greenpea
Methodology
Trying to find out which banks have invested in which coal
projects is a bit like trying to find needles in a haystack.
The information is often classified as commercial-in-confidence
and the banks all disclose investment information in very
different ways. Greenpeace commissioned Profundo,
an economic research consultancy based in Amsterdam,
to conduct the research.
We decided to look at the last five years of investment in
coal and renewables rather than the banks’ total investments
in these sectors, on the basis that the last five years would
give a more accurate picture of the banks’ current investment
strategy than total historical investments.
The investments were identified by using annual reports,
stock exchange filings and other publications, company
register filings, archives of international financial journals,
international press archives, archives of national press
publications as well as specialised financial databases.
We need the big four banks to stand with the Australian
community and make a clear decision to not finance new
coal power stations. And we need them to do it now.
With twelve new coal power stations on the drawing board
around Australia, and with governments unwilling to stand
up to the big polluters, banks have a vital role to play in driving
the clean energy revolution we so urgently need.
©Greenpe
ace/Red
ondo
URN THIS PAGE >>
CAN DO - T
WHAT YOU
Comprehensive information was not consistently available
so a number of assumptions and extrapolations were made,
using a similar methodology to that used by the banks
themselves. Full details on our methodology is available
in the Profundo report online here:
www.greenpeace.org.au/dirtybanks/profundo
References
i Profundo, 2010, Australian banks financing coal and renewable energy
ii http://www.garnautreview.org.au/pdf/Garnaut_Chapter7.pdf page 160
iii Profundo, 2010, Australian banks financing coal and renewable energy
iv http://www.anz.com.au/about-us/corporate-responsibility/environment/
environmental-footprint/carbon/ accessed 7.9.10
v http://www.anz.com/aus/values/environment/Equator.asp accessed 7.9.10
vi http://www.commbank.com.au/about-us/our-company/sustainability/
environment.aspx accessed 7.9.10
vii http://www.commbank.com.au/about-us/our-company/sustainability/
accessed 7.9.10
viii http://www.nab.com.au/wps/wcm/connect/nab/nab/home/about_us/7/4/2/2
accessed 7.9.10
ix http://www.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/sustainability-and-community/
environment/ accessed 7.9.10
x http://ww2.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/sustainability-and-community/
environment/policy-and-governance/ accessed 7.9.10
xi http://www.greenpeace.org.au/energyrevolution
xii http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jun/03/renewables-energy
accessed 7.9.10
Pillars of Pollution 6
 ce/Redondo
©Greenpea

What you can do

Your money should go where you want it to: creating a better

future with clean energy, not funding polluting coal power.
Banks spend millions of dollars each year to improve their
reputation, keep existing customers and attract new ones –
©Greenpe
when we ask for change, they’ll be listening. ace/Sew
ell/Oculi

1. Let your bank know that you don’t want your money
used to invest in more pollution.

ANZ 2. Drop into a local bank branch and ask to speak

to the manager about their coal investments.
• 1800 805 154 You can take a copy of this report.
• Complete the online feedback form:
http://bit.ly/DirtyANZ 3. Become a Greenpeace Community Activist
• Locked Bag 4050, South Melbourne VIC 3205 or join a local Climate Action Group to join others
in your community taking action for a clean energy
Commonwealth Bank future at bank branches across the country.
• 1800 805 605 www.greenpeace.org.au/take-action
• Complete the online feedback form:
http://bit.ly/DirtyCBA 4. Credit unions and cooperative banks
• Customer Relations, GPO Box 41, Credit unions and cooperative banks offer competitive
Sydney NSW 2001 services to the big banks but most don’t invest in polluting
coal. Our research showed that both Bendigo Bank and
National Australia Bank mecu Credit Union had no money in coal. Unfortunately,
• 1800 152 015 they also have no money invested in renewables.
• Complete the online feedback form: Credit unions are not-for-profit and every customer is an
http://bit.ly/DirtyNAB owner. The incentive is to make your money work for you
• Head of Customer Resolutions, and your community, not profit from dirty investments.
Reply Paid 2870, Melbourne VIC 8060 The Australian Credit Union and Building Society Group
(www.comesbacktoyou.com.au) represents more than
Westpac
80 organisations and 4.5 million members.
• 1300 130 467
• Complete the online feedback form:
http://bit.ly/DirtyWestpac
• Reply Paid 5265, Sydney NSW 2001

want it to:
Your money should go where you
p, readily available
creating a better future with chea
ing coal power.
clean energy, not funding pollut
Printed on 100% recycled paper

Join Greenpeace. We do not accept funding from

governments or corporations; instead we rely on the goodwill
and generosity of people like you to continue our work.
Call 1800 815 151 or visit www.greenpeace.org.au/join ©Greenpe
ace/Hun
t

Greenpeace Australia Pacific

GPO Box 3307, Sydney NSW 2001
L 2, 33 Mountain Street, Ultimo NSW 2007
Ph: +61 2 9281 6100
Fax: +61 2 9280 0380
Email: support.au@greenpeace.org
www.greenpeace.org.au

Report updated February 2011. Cover Image ©Greenpeace/Murphy ©Greenpeace/Redondo