UPDATE: 5 November 2021. Bank of New York Mellon has withdrawn from the deal and will resign its role with Adani in Australia. See our blog for further information.
21 October 2021
It has been revealed that an Australian subsidiary of Bank of New York Mellon (BNYM) could be playing a role in a new funding deal linked to Adani’s Carmichael coal project.
Market Forces has reached out privately to BNYM to clarify the position. Yesterday we received an ambiguous statement from the bank that unfortunately does not rule it out from working on a new deal to finance Adani’s Australian coal mine, rail line or port.
BNYM already has financial ties with Adani Carmichael. It is an investor in bonds issued by Adani’s Abbot Point coal port (now rebranded as NQXT – North Queensland Export Terminal), via which Carmichael thermal coal will be exported. Additionally, it has acted as the security trustee under Abbot Point/NQXT’s debt agreements (see pg 27).
While the information we’ve seen doesn’t clarify the nature of any deal BNYM is involved with, it could be either for an attempted funding of the Carmichael mine or rail line, or refinancing of Abbot Point’s US$500 million bond issue, which is maturing in December 2022.
Adani has failed to find one single bank to fund the Carmichael mine and rail line directly, and it is also having trouble refinancing its Abbot Point port debt. In March 2020 Abbot Point cancelled a bond issue and it has had to pay back from its own pocket two of the last three portions of debt which have matured since then.
Abbot Point coal port is an essential part of the Carmichael thermal coal project, being the Adani-owned port via which the coal would be exported to India. Any financial service for, or investment in, this port is supporting a massive new thermal coal mine in the midst of the climate crisis.
BNYM’s reputation is on the line—tell it to immediately rule out playing any new or expanded role relating to Adani’s climate-wrecking Carmichael mine, rail line and port, and to publicly cut all ties with Carmichael and Abbot Point/NQXT once current contractual obligations are met. Fill out the form to also tell Abbot Point’s existing bondholders to refuse to make any further investment in the port.
TAKE ACTION
Tell the bondholders in Adani’s Abbot Point coal port (rebranded NQXT) to make no further investments.
The email will be going to BlackRock, Van Eck, Invesco, Thompson Investment Management, State Street, JP Morgan, GAM Holding, Sage Advisory Services, VP Bank, Principal Financial Group, Zazove Associates, Fuh Hwa Investment Trust, UBS, Fuchs and Associates, BMO Global Asset Management and Prudential.