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AsiaElec RENEWABLES AsiaElec

Fortescue Metals sets

235GW green target

GLOBAL IRON ore miner Fortescue Metals is to build green hydrogen and 100 GW of wind and solar
235 GW of wind and solar capacity to become capacity.
a major producer of green electricity and hydro- Forrest said renewables and renewable
gen that would rival the country’s biggest oil sup- hydrogen could be applied to fuel cells, ammo-
pliers in terms of energy produced. nia, steel making and industry heating. “Fortes-
Speaking at the miner’s annual general meet- cue is building a major renewable energy/green
ing, CEO Andrew Forrest said: “It is a time that industry business with global scale,” Forrest said,
has come. The world is never short and never will referring to the coming “stampede” into renewa-
be short of renewable energy. ble energy and green industries.
“After scientific and personal analysis of the Fortescue has already begun installing renew-
renewable energy resources of our little planet ables projects at its mining sites in Australia.
I can assure you that there is more than enough It also has operations in Ecuador and Argen-
renewable energy to sustainably and economi- tina, and is assessing exploration and develop-
cally supply every person on this planet from this ment opportunities in Colombia, Chile and
time forth.” Peru, as well as Portugal and Kazakhstan.
Forrest said that the company would develop He said the company had been working for
projects in nearly 50 countries. He said that the past five years to collect licences and patents
Fortescue was looking at a varied list of states to put the technology plan together, and had now
and assessing their potential and government engaged more than 25 governments around the
interest. world.
The company would consider wind and solar, “This will place us up there with the major
as well as green hydrogen and ammonia. The energy companies in the world if we fully
output would target not just domestic energy develop them,” he said. “As each project rolls in
but also drive forward international markets in we will consider them on their merits … and we
green fuels, fertilisers and metals. will go ahead and finance those projects.
“It is our job to respectfully use these read- “Those first targets of 235 GW of green
ily available renewable resources and supply the energy … will be financed conservatively and
world’s fuel and power at sufficient scale to sat- away from our balance sheet. I see, once we can
isfy the need for abundant, cheap, zero-pollutant create sufficient renewable fuels, and we can
energy.” guarantee reliability of supply at scale, there will
The company’s presentation to sharehold- be a veritable stampede into green energy and
ers outlined that the initial focus would be on green industry.”™

Scottish Widows to divest from

thermal coal and tar sands

GLOBAL
UK pensions investor Scottish Widows is to collaboration with BlackRock to design an inno-
divest at least GBP440mn ($528mn) from com- vative fund that integrates ESG considerations
panies that maintain their exposure to coal and into its pension funds..
weapons, among other factors, as it positions The ACS Climate Transition World Equity
itself as an ethical investor.. Fund backs businesses that decrease carbon
The company said it would withdraw its cash emissions, increase clean technology revenue
from companies that fail to meet its environ- and display more efficient water and waste man-
mental, social and governance (ESG) standards, agement. The fund also makes significant ESG
arguing that such risks were now a major factor exclusions..
in overall investment risk.. Scottish Widows’ announcement follows
It warned this figure could grow much further such major industrial names as Toshiba and Sie-
if companies do not take action to improve the mens, which have also this week announced an
sustainability of their business practices.. end to new coal investment and commitments to
The exclusions move follows the insurer’s reducing emissions..

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 46 18•November•2020