Market Forces

After years of pressure from customers, shareholders, environmental groups and the broader community, Westpac’s climate policy update in 2017 effectively ruled out any loans for the controversial Adani Carmichael mega coal mine.

While Westpac’s updated climate policy is a big win for the campaign to stop Adani, it still leaves a long way to go to get the bank off fossil fuels altogether.

Use the form below to tell Westpac they must uphold their pledge to the Paris Agreement’s goal of keeping global warming below two degrees – by stopping the flow of money to this dirty industry.

In December 2015, Westpac publicly committed to taking action to support the international goal of limiting global warming to less than 2°C above pre-industrial levels. But as our latest 2°C scorecard shows, the bank’s recent lending remains completely inconsistent with that commitment.

A two degree warming limit gives us a very strict carbon budget to work within, meaning 80% of known fossil fuel reserves must stay underground if we are to have even a 75% chance of not exceeding the limit. Click here to learn more about the big banks and 2°C.

Westpac took a step towards backing up its 2°C commitment in April 2017, when it released a climate policy update. This rules out finance for most new coal mines – including Adani’s Carmichael project – and also makes it unlikely that the bank will fund any new coal power plants. Although a step in the right direction, Westpac’s policy doesn’t go far enough to line up with its two degree commitment. You can read our full analysis of what Westpac’s climate policy update means for their future fossil fuel support here.

Find out more about the extent and impacts of banks financing fossil fuels, compare the lending positions of different banks and learn more about how to switch to a bank that aligns to your values.