Press release – 28 May, 2015Sydney, May 28, 2015 – In response to groundbreaking news that the finance committee of the Norwegian Parliament will vote to divest the Norwegian Government Pension Fund from coal mining and coal based utilities, Greenpeace Australia Pacific campaigner Nikola Casule said: “This is great news for the climate and another blow to the coal industry already in decline."The Norwegian parliament has recognised the havoc that coal wreaks on our climate and the environment, as well as on investors’ bottom line. That’s a clear message for the Australian government – rather than help fund future coal projects in the Galilee Basin, the federal government should put its money elsewhere.
The Norwegian Oil Fund, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, is one of the best performing investment funds in the world. The decision to divest from coal is a strong warning to anyone thinking of investing in the Carmichael mega-mine and Abbot Point port proposed for Queensland’s Galilee Basin."
“With coal on the way out and a coal price in decline, smart investors are getting out. Eleven major global banks have already ruled out investing in the Carmichael mine and it’s time for Australia’s big four banks to take care of their own investors and the Great Barrier Reef by saying no to this doomed project.”
Contact:
Aaron Gray-Block 0437 845 150 or Nikola Casule 0428 769 307