Scored evidence collected on an entity's engagement with land-use and circular economy policy will now be fully weighted into the final calculations for each entity's metrics. This follows a two year process where InfluenceMap has evolved its methodology to collect evidence on corporate and industry engagement with these key areas of climate-related policy.
We have strengthened the algorithm for discounting the impact older evidence on an organization's top-line metrics. Evidence from within the last two years is weighted the strongest and then gradually weighted out of the scoring calculations as it gets older. All evidence that is 5 years or older is completely removed from the scoring calculations. Users will still be able to view older evidence items that are archived the scoring matrix below, but these will not be impacting the organization's current scores.
Climate Policy Engagement Overview: The Australian Energy Producers (AEP), formerly the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association, is highly and negatively engaged with Australian climate-related policy. The organization has taken positions against the need for stringent regulatory intervention to address climate change, and has particularly opposed measures to transition the economy away from fossil fuels.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: AEP’s top-line messaging on climate policy is supportive. On its corporate website, accessed in August 2024, the Australian Energy Producers states support for Australia’s net-zero emissions by 2050 target and for the goals of the Paris Agreement. The association stated support for climate policy in its September 2022 submission on the Safeguard Mechanism Reforms.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: AEP does not appear to support climate-related regulations in Australia. In a July 2024 submission to parliament, the association opposed the introduction of a climate trigger in the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, stating that it may render other policy such as the Safeguard Mechanism “ineffective”. The association has also engaged multiple times with policymakers in opposition to the reform of the Safeguard Mechanism in 2022-23. In a March 2023 submission to a Senate Committee, it appeared to oppose the reform’s additional measures on fossil fuel facilities, while in a February 2023 consultation submission, it appeared to not support the government’s proposed design of the policy, stating it is going too fast and did not support a number of the measures proposed. Likewise, the association appeared to oppose the reforms in its initial August 2022 consultation submission.
On greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets, AEP appeared to support targets with major exceptions in a July 2023 submission to the Climate Change Authority, stating that targets should be realistic and advocated for emission reductions from achieved through switching from coal to gas using Australian LNG exports to be considered, but while also advocating for resulting scope 3 emissions not be included in Australia’s Nationally Determined Contribution’s (NDC).
Positioning on Energy Transition AEP is highly engaged with policy related to the Australian energy mix and continues to advocate for new investments in fossil gas supply and production. In its November 2023 submission on the Future Gas Strategy, the association appeared to not support policy measures to reduce fossil gas demand and advocated for new liquified natural gas (LNG) projects. AEP also urged the government to ‘remove barriers and putting in place the policy drivers necessary to facilitate investment in new gas supply’. Similarly, in a July 2023 submission to the Climate Change Authority, AEP opposed the phase-out of fossil fuels and promoted the ongoing role for fossil gas in the energy mix. In August 2023, AEP CEO Samantha McCulloch gave testimony to the Senate Select Committee on the Cost of Living, in which she claimed investments in new fossil gas supply would bring down energy prices.
AEP also advocated for the inclusion of fossil fuels in policy measures designed to aid decarbonization. For example, it advocated for the inclusion of hydrogen produced by fossil fuels with carbon capture and storage in the Hydrogen Headstart Program in an August 2023 consultation submission, as well as appearing to support hydrogen produced from fossil fuels over renewable hydrogen in its submission on the Review of the National Hydrogen Strategy, also in August 2023. Previously, in February 2023, AEP advocated similar positions in a consultation submission on the National Reconstruction Fund.
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 Q3 2024.