Macquarie Net Zero Pledge Contradicted by A$5 Billion Oil and Gas Stakes

A June 2023 IEEFA Australia report found that Macquarie Group's oil and gas investments, totalling approximately A$5 billion, directly contradict the bank's commitment to the Net Zero Banking Alliance and the global 1.5-degree warming limit. IEEFA Australia CEO Amandine Denis-Ryan and analyst Saurabh Trivedi authored the report, which identifies Macquarie's stakes in 11 major global oil and gas companies and nine smaller high-growth producers.

Macquarie Group joined the Net Zero Banking Alliance in October 2021, committing to align its lending and investment portfolio with a 1.5-degree pathway. The IEEFA report documents that the bank owns large volumes of shares and bonds in 11 of the largest global oil and gas majors worth approximately A$3.5 billion, all planning major short-term expansions. It also holds approximately A$1.4 billion in nine smaller companies with aggressive growth plans, bringing the identified total to roughly A$5 billion. A$7.7 billion in broader upstream oil and gas exposure was identified when loans were excluded from the analysis.

Macquarie's disclosed financing exposure to the full oil and gas value chain, including midstream and downstream activities, stands at only A$1.2 billion — significantly lower than the levels reported by CBA at A$2.1 billion, NAB at A$1.9 billion, and Westpac at A$1.9 billion for upstream exposure alone. Denis-Ryan identified this as a potential disclosure gap arising from the NZBA guidelines' failure to mandate targets for off-balance-sheet fossil fuel activities, an area where Macquarie's large asset management portfolio makes the omission especially material.

IEEFA argued that Macquarie's emissions intensity target for oil and gas activities could incentivise increased gas financing to dilute average portfolio emissions intensity without reducing absolute financed emissions. The report also noted that oil and gas company stocks have materially underperformed market benchmarks over the past decade and that new LNG developments face the risk of supply glut and uncontracted volumes. IEEFA called on Macquarie to disclose off-balance-sheet investments in oil and gas and incorporate them into net-zero targets, consistent with its treatment of green energy assets under management.

Key figure — A$1.2 billion — Macquarie Group's disclosed financing exposure to the full oil and gas value chain, against IEEFA's estimate of A$7.7 billion in actual upstream exposure