Climate Policy Engagement Analysis
Climate Policy Engagement Overview: While the APA Group (APA) recognizes the need for action to respond to climate change, the company is unsupportive of specific-climate related regulation and advocates for the continued use of fossil fuels in the energy mix.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: APA appears to support top-line action on climate change. In the company's climate change policy, published in September 2024, it stated that the ‘science of climate change assessed by the International Panel on Climate Change is unequivocal’ and stated support for the Paris goals of limiting global temperature increases to 1.5 °C. On the need for government policy to achieve this, APA’s position within its climate change policy document is less clear, stating that “well-designed market-based mechanisms” will be required but does give a position on the need for other forms of policy.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: APA’s engagement with specific-climate related policies is negative. In March 2024, it responded to the consultation on the Expanded Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS), in which it advocated for similar policy mechanisms to support fossil fuel production. Later, in May 2024 comments on the Climate Change Authority's 2024 Issues paper: Targets, Pathways and Progress, APA advocated for fossil gas generated power to be included in the CIS. In the same comments, APA also appeared to not support an ambitious greenhouse gas reduction target for 2035, stressing the technical and economic challenges associated with an ambitious target and for the target to be 'achievable' while supporting the continued role of fossil fuels.
Elsewhere, in February 2023, the company responded to the consultation on the proposed design of the Safeguard Mechanism Reforms, in which it appeared to support, but with major exceptions and stressing the risk of carbon leakage as a result of the reformed policy. Nevertheless, in the same month, APA submitted comments on the National Energy Performance Strategy, appearing to support the policy.
Positioning on Energy Transition: APA appears to support an increase in investment in renewable energy, but also for increased investments in new fossil gas supply at the same time. In its April 2024 comments on the Electricity and Energy Sector Plan Discussion Paper, the company advocated for increased investment in fossil gas and fossil gas infrastructure and for policy to incentivize fossil gas powered generation. APA also promoted new investment in fossil gas generated power in its February 2024 comments on the Coal Orderly Exit management Framework, the Australian Electricity Market Operator's Integrated System Plan and November 2023 Future Gas Strategy. While APA states support for hydrogen generation in its corporate reports, it advocated for the continued role of fossil fuel infrastructure for hydrogen in its August 2023 response to the Review of Australia’s Hydrogen Strategy. It also did not state the need to decarbonize hydrogen production, and advocated for it’s use to go beyond just hard-to-abate applications.
Industry Association Governance: As of October 2024, APA has not published a dedicated disclosure of its industry association memberships and their alignment with climate change policy. The company disclosed a list of memberships in its 2024 annual report, without details of climate advocacy activities or if the company is aligned with its association's positions. The company retains memberships to a range of associations, some that typically engage negatively with climate policy, such as the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia (CME) and the Energy Users Association of Australia. Nevertheless, the company also retains memberships to more positive associations, such as the Clean Energy Council.
InfluenceMap collects and assesses evidence of corporate climate policy engagement on a weekly basis, depending on the availability of information from each specific data source (for more information, see our methodology). While this analysis flows through to the company’s scores each week, the summary above is updated periodically. This summary was last updated in Q4 2024.