Shareholder pressure forces Glencore to cap coal mining

COMMODITIES giant Glencore has said it will cap how much coal it mines amid shareholder pressure for it to help reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases.

The move is a reversal for a company that has long championed the extraction and burning of fossil fuels, and which recently purchased further stakes in two Australian coal mines as rivals pulled out amid climate concerns. Glencore said the decision was taken after consulting with investors, known as the Climate Action 100+ initiative, who have lobbied for corporate action against climate change.

“As one of the world’s largest diversified mining companies, we have a key role in enabling transition to a low-carbon economy,” the Switzerland-based company said.

Burning coal for heat and electricity is a major source of carbon dioxide emissions, which contribute to man-made global warming.

Glencore said it will prioritise future investments to increase production of commodities “essential to the energy and mobility transition and to limit our coal production capacity broadly to current levels”.

Noting “the increasing risks posed by climate change”, Glencore explicitly referenced the 2015 Paris climate accord, which set a target of keeping global warming well below 2C by the end of the century.