A groundbreaking legal case commenced today in the federal court, aiming to hold Australian oil and gas company Santos accountable for its net zero commitments.
The Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR), a shareholder in Santos, has initiated this case, claiming that the company misled stakeholders about its emissions reduction targets.
ACCR alleges that Santos lacks a solid foundation for its assertions of achieving a 26% to 30% reduction in emissions by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2040.
This alleged misrepresentation constitutes deceptive conduct, violating Australian corporate and consumer laws.
Noel Hutley SC, representing the ACCR, stated, “We’ll be submitting that Santos lacked reasonable grounds for making these statements,” as the trial unfolds over 13 days.
The trial examines claims of natural gas as a “clean fuel” and blue hydrogen.The case will scrutinize Santos’s marketing of natural gas as a “clean fuel” and its promotion of blue hydrogen—which is produced using natural gas and carbon capture technologies—as “clean” and “zero emissions.”
Hutley criticized Santos’s climate plan, arguing it is merely a collection of speculations hastily compiled.
The ACCR’s strategy includes using its shareholder status to push firms toward fulfilling the Paris Climate Agreement objectives, which Australia signed in 2016.
The court heard that Santos had been aware of the potential increase in emissions from hydrogen production, information not accurately reflected in its reports.
In response, Neil Young KC, representing Santos, contended that investors would recognize that not all elements of the company’s roadmap were established projects and that a significant transformation would be necessary to develop hydrogen and carbon capture markets.
The ACCR seeks court declarations confirming Santos’s misleading conduct, injunctions against future deception, and a corrective notice regarding the environmental impacts of its operations.
The trial will continue with opening statements expected to last through Tuesday, with a conclusion anticipated by November 15.