Climate Lobbying Overview: Glencore appears broadly unsupportive of immediate action on climate change, and continues to support a sustained role for coal in the energy mix. Glencore also retains membership to a network of trade associations which engage negatively on various strands of climate change policy.

Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Glencore appears broadly supportive of climate action in its top-line communications. In its 2020 Sustainability Report, published in April 2021, Glencore clearly supported the Paris Agreement and the science of the IPCC on climate change. In the same report, Glencore stated that the global response to climate change should pursue “twin objectives” of limiting temperatures in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement, and supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals, stressing access to affordable energy. In its 2020 Annual Report, published in March 2021, Glencore supported a broad policy response to climate change, including incentives for low-carbon technologies and market-based regulations such as carbon pricing.

Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: InfluenceMap has found no evidence of engagement with specific climate policies in 2020-21. Glencore only appears to disclose its broad policy position on issues such as carbon pricing on its corporate website. Glencore has declined to respond to CDP since 2017.

However, Glencore has previously lobbied negatively on ambitious climate policy in Australia. In an April 2018 consultation response on the Emissions Reduction Fund, Glencore advocated for weakening the Safeguard Mechanism, a policy designed to limit increased GHG emissions from heavy emitters, pushing for greater flexibility in setting GHG baselines along with the use of offsets. In the same response, Glencore also stated support for the Mineral Council Australia’s position on the policy, which likewise advocated several measures to weaken the policy.

Glencore has also been unsupportive of carbon tax legislation in South Africa. In its 2018 Industry Association Review, published in June 2019, Glencore disclosed that it supported the Minerals Council of South Africa’s position which, in the lead up to the carbon tax bill’s approval in 2019, repeatedly called for further delays to its implementation and demanded relief be agreed for the mining sector.

Positioning on Energy Transition: Glencore continues to promote a sustained role for coal in the global energy mix. In its 2020 Industry Association Review, released in December 2020, the company stated that coal, oil and gas will continue to be a part of the global energy mix “for decades". In the same report, Glencore described CCUS as a “key technology” in the energy transition, but did not propose timelines or the need for an overall reduction of coal in the energy mix. In a 2020 Guardian article, Glencore maintained that coal will be required to meet energy demand in Asia, and promoted coal as “part of the energy solution” in a 2020 presentation at a conference on the Swiss Energy Strategy.

In May 2020, Glencore advocated for the approval of the Valeria project in Queensland, a new thermal and metallurgical coal mine. In July 2020 Glencore Chief Operating Officer Ian Cribb commented to the press on the project, stating, “In Queensland, coal continues to be an important driver of the economy as a source of jobs, royalties, reliable energy and support for local businesses.” Ian Cribb is also a director at the Queensland Resources Council, which ran a political advertising campaign in the run-up to the Queensland Election in October 2020 to encourage political support for the coal industry, while heavily criticising Queensland’s Green Party.

Industry Association Governance: Glencore discloses its industry association memberships and has published three reviews of its alignment with these groups on climate change in 2019, 2020, and 2021. Glencore decided to terminate its membership with the World Coal Association in 2022. However, the company retains strong links to several industry associations actively opposed to meaningful climate change policy, including as a director on the board of the Queensland Resources Council, board-membership of the Minerals Council of Australia and The Minerals Council South Africa, and regular membership of the New South Wales Minerals Council.

A detailed assessment of the company's industry association review can be found on our CA100+ webpage here.