Cement maker Boral has been criticised by $9b Australian Ethical Investment for dialling back short-term emissions reduction targets.
The boss of one of Australia’s largest unions has cautioned investment funds against pushing too hard for large manufacturers inAustralian Workers Union national secretary Paul Farrow called for a commonsense approach, built around steadily decarbonising without putting Australia’s industrial base at risk.
Ms Thomson said she was frustrated the funds had gone ahead with that claim without contacting her. “It’s really difficult to swallow,” she said.Australian Ethical Investment on Wednesday reinforced that it was worried Boral may also step back from its existing 2030 emissions reduction targets, which are separate from any requirements under the federal government’s safeguard mechanism which came into force in mid-2023.
Boral in August cut its self-imposed emissions reduction target for 2025 to between 12 per cent to 14 per cent, from an original 18 per cent, compared with 2019 figures, after deciding it was unlikely to meet its original targets.Boral said the revision to the 2025 target was done to “reflect what is achievable given regulatory and project delivery delays” and that it was no different to its obligations on any forward-looking financial forecasts.