Home > Adani loses another banker as bushfire survivors call on creditors to walk away

Adani loses another banker as bushfire survivors call on creditors to walk away

19 June 2020

19 June 2020

South African bank Investec has become the 68th major company to rule out involvement in the controversial Adani Carmichael coal project, while also distancing itself from Adani’s Abbot Point coal port, despite arranging a bond issue for the port back in 2017.

This comes just as Abbot Point, located in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, looks to refinance $250 million in debt, with a total of $1 billion coming due in the next two years.

“In line with our commitment to climate change, Investec has not lent to the Carmichael coal project and can confirm we have no loan exposure to Adani Abbot Point Terminal (AAPT). We had a historic hedging facility with AAPT which will not be renewed.”
Investec Bank

See today’s coverage in the Australian Financial Review (paywalled)

Investec, together with Haitong and Stifel were the arrangers of a US$500 million bond issue for Abbot Point in December 2017. The other two banks are now part of a quartet, with CLSA and Emirates NBD Capital, looking to refinance the debt Abbot Point has due in 2020 and 2021.

For a full rundown of Abbot Point’s debt and creditors, see our Abbot Point page.

Bushfire survivors call on Korean creditors to walk away

Meanwhile, another group of investors linked to Abbot Point were feeling the heat.

Market Forces, together with Bushfire Survivors for Climate Action, wrote to five Korean investors who have outstanding loans with Abbot Point coal port (Mirae Asset Daewoo, Industrial Bank of Korea, Samsung Securities, Hanwha Investment & Securities, Korea Investment & Securities). The letter explained the essential role that Abbot Point plays in the climate-destroying Carmichael coal project, and requested that these investors make a commitment of providing no additional funds to Abbot Point.

“As bushfire survivors we have seen and felt the impacts of climate change, caused mainly by burning fossil fuels…We are asking Korean investors not to fuel even worse bushfires in the future. Please walk away from Abbot Point and the Adani coal project”
Jo Dodds, President Bushfire Survivors for Climate Action

The letter received coverage in the Korean media, and we are now awaiting reply. The funding of a coal port linked to a massive new thermal coal development is a direct contradiction of the Korean Government’s plans to phase out Korea’s financing of coal.

Australian bushfire survivors have their voices heard in Korea, calling on investors to not participate in the Abbot Point coal port debt refinancing.

For a full rundown of Abbot Point’s debt and creditors, see our Abbot Point page.

Take action. Contact Abbot Point’s creditors and Adani’s bond arrangers to explain that funding any Adani company means supporting the disastrous Carmichael coal project:

Name*
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Email to existing creditors
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Subject (you can edit this)
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Message
I am writing to ask that your company does not participate in any further financing of North Queensland Export Terminal or NQXT (formerly known as Adani Abbot Point Terminal). NQXT is an essential component of the controversial Carmichael thermal coal export project with all the coal extracted from the Carmichael mine intended to go through NQXT. This means that by financing the port, your company is supporting the Carmichael coal export project. Continuing to do this will generate significant reputational risks for your company. Not only do the majority of Australians oppose Adani’s coal mine, the project is being contested by Traditional Owners who have not given their consent to the mine, it has cleared endangered species habitat, will drain billions of litres of precious water resources and add millions of tonnes of carbon to the atmosphere. Helping NQXT means you risk being associated with a massive new thermal coal mine in a new coal basin, and being seen as partly responsible for one of the biggest potential sources of new carbon emissions on the planet. NQXT itself has been fined [1], several times [2], for polluting nearby wetlands. In addition, NQXT has had some difficulty refinancing its debt with a bond issue planned for early 2020 cancelled. Adani was forced to repay $270 million for two tranches of debt coming due in 2020 out of its own funds. This difficulty to refinance, as well as ESG risks associated with the port's link to Carmichael, are the primary reasons both S&P Global and Fitch have respectively downgraded the rating and outlook of NQXT bonds [3]. I urge you to rule out further financial support for the Adani Abbot Point Terminal/North Queensland Export Terminal and all entities associated with the disastrous Carmichael coal project. I hope to hear from you soon in response to my concerns. [1] https://www.australianmining.com.au/news/adanis-abbot-point-coal-gets-12k-fine-stormwater-release/ [2] https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/adani-fined-after-stormwater-flows-into-north-queensland-wetlands-20190326-p517m2.html [3] S&P Global Ratings https://www.spglobal.com/ratings/en/research/articles/210329-research-update-north-queensland-export-terminal-rating-lowered-to-bb-on-refinancing-risks-outlook-negati-11897266 Fitch Ratings https://www.fitchratings.com/research/infrastructure-project-finance/fitch-revises-outlook-on-north-queensland-export-terminal-to-negative-affirms-at-bb-20-09-2021
Email to bond arrangers
Subject (you can edit this)
Message
Back in 2020, you were named as one of the companies working to raise finance for the Adani owned North Queensland Export Terminal or NQXT (formerly known as Adani Abbot Point Terminal). This port will be used to ship all of the thermal coal mined from the controversial Adani Carmichael coal mine and thus is a critical part of the Carmichael project. Refusing to rule out any further provision of services to NQXT poses a significant reputational risk for your company. In the midst of an urgent climate crisis, the Carmichael coal mine would produce enough coal over its lifetime to emit 4.6 billion tonnes of CO2, equivalent to over eight years of Australia’s annual greenhouse gas emissions. At the local level it is being contested by Traditional Owners who have not given their consent to the mine and it threatens water supplies and agricultural production. It would also increase industrialisation in the already distressed Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area. All this has made the Carmichael coal mine arguably the most environmentally and socially contentious project in Australia’s history. A survey in 2018 found 65% of respondents either opposed or strongly opposed Adani’s Carmichael mine. Based on the information above, I consider your willingness to provide financial services to NQXT as support for the climate-destroying Carmichael coal project. I urge you to publicly commit to permanently cut ties with NQXT and all Adani entities linked to Carmichael coal. I hope to hear from you soon in response to my concerns.
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Short video explaining why we need to contact Abbot Point’s creditors.