Australian energy company Woodside and Greenpeace Australia Pacific (GAP), an independent campaigning organisation, have reached a settlement in an emissions lawsuit, which has now been dismissed in the Australian Federal Court.
Woodside confirmed that the Australian Federal Court had concluded proceedings brought against it by Greenpeace Australia Pacific in December 2023. The proceedings, in which GAP challenged certain representations made by the Australian company in relation to its climate strategy and emissions reduction targets, were dismissed with the consent of both parties, who will bear their own costs.
Joe RafalovichHead of Climate and Energy at Greenpeace Australia Pacific commented: “Greenpeace Australia Pacific cares about transparent and accurate climate disclosures, and in December 2023, took Woodside to court to challenge its claims. During the course of the case, Woodside changed the way it presented its carbon emissions plans compared to what it said before filing this case. We consider this a win and have decided to continue the fight against fossil fuel companies outside the courts.
“The settlement of this case does not signal the end of our fight against the nature-destroying Woodside climate and gas projects. While we may have agreed to resolve our lawsuit against Woodside, in which we alleged it made misleading and deceptive claims to investors regarding its climate plans, the reality is that the court of public opinion will judge Woodside for the damage it is doing to our climate.“
When Greenpeace Australia Pacific Woodside suedIt alleged that the company had misrepresented its previous emissions reductions and its emissions reduction targets for 2025, 2030 and 2050. The activists claimed, among other things, that the operator had written its emissions reduction targets would achieve significant reductions in actual Scopes 1 and 2 emissions, even though they would rely heavily on offsets to achieve a reduction in net emissions.
Rafalovich added: “Woodside’s greed-driven appetite to expand fossil fuel production is accelerating the climate crisis, putting the environment and communities at risk. Greenpeace strongly supports public interest litigation as a critical tool in democratic engagement to protect our planet and hold big corporations accountable for their contributions to climate change.
“Investors and the public deserve accurate information about the true climate impact of a company and its strategies, especially when these strategies are presented as ‘Paris-compliant’ – an absurd claim for a company responsible for one of Australia’s largest LNG export terminals, and Now the United States“.
Greenpeace also reported that Woodside portrayed its emissions reduction targets as consistent with what the latest climate science has identified as necessary to meet the temperature goals of the Paris Agreement, but its emissions reduction targets do not include Scope 3 emissions, which account for more than 90% of the company’s emissions.
As the Australian giant has plans to significantly expand oil and gas production and processing, activists point out that the sum of the company’s actual Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions will not decrease meaningfully by 2030 and may increase after 2030.
Rafalovich concluded: “The expansion of fossil fuel use is incompatible with a world heading towards 1.5°C – Greenpeace will continue its campaign to accelerate the transition to local, clean and affordable wind and solar energy, which is the only solution to the energy crisis we are all currently facing globally.”
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