environment
Climate
Our business is inextricably linked with the global seaborne coal trade, the continued demand for Hunter Valley coal and supporting universal access to affordable and reliable energy. We recognise and are planning for the global transitioning to a low carbon future and expect to play a role for decades to come.
Our role in energy transition
We recognise the global transition to a low-carbon future, the climate change science set out in the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook.
Meeting global energy demand and reducing emissions is a key global challenge. Different countries will have different pathways and fuel mixes to reach the same shared global emissions goal.
When we look to the future, the regional strengths of product quality and reliable supply will support the Hunter Valley coal industry to remain steady through ongoing global change. The overall demand for the Hunter’s product in its core South-East Asian markets remains strong and is consistent with the global forecast implications of energy transition such as those from the International Energy Agency.
Our business connects local producers to the world. When we assess customer and producer expectations, including the transition plans in major customer markets, indications are that demand for Hunter Valley coal in its core markets will likely be fairly stable through a large part of the 2020s andwe consider it likely that the complexity of the transition will result in increased volatility and from time-to-time, demand and supply imbalances.
As the energy transition plays out over time, Port Waratah and indeed the Hunter Valley coal industry is exceptionally well-positioned to meet market demand in a very competitive way. The infrastructure exists throughout the coal chain and there are ample resources of quality product in existing mining areas, consistent with State Government policy.
Climate Action Plan 2023-2030
Our Climate action plan has been developed to outline our climate action target, key themes, and synthesises a specific programme of work to prioritise our actions in reducing our greenhouse gas emissions.
Our target is to reduce total Scope 1 and Scope 2 (market based) emissions by 50 per cent by 2030 compared to the baseline year.
2018 was selected as the baseline year as it best represents a period of operational stabilisation following multi-decadal growth in capacity, throughput and energy demands.
The development and adoption of this Climate Action Plan aims to represent a step up of Port Waratah’s commitment to mitigate emissions exposure, manage climate risk and make a positive contribution to Australia’s Paris Climate Accord commitments.
The establishment of our 2030 target enables Port Waratah to sustainably transition to a low-emissions future, while actively contributing to the collective effort in achieving Australia’s 2030 target.
Updates on action progress will be published here and through our community newsletter. Sign up to our quarterly newsletter or make an enquiry for more information below.
Energy efficiency and emissions
We deliver strategies to improve our energy efficiency and reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.
Grid purchased electricity accounts for 99% of the total energy consumed at Port Waratah, primarily powering our site operations and equipment. The remaining 1% is fuel for our vehicle fleet.
Each year, we report our energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the previous financial year to the Australian Federal Government through the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) Scheme. This scheme requires Port Waratah to report on Scope 1 emissions being the emissions released directly from our business and Scope 2 emissions being emissions released from energy purchased from an organisation. This data is used to meet international reporting obligations, inform government policy and provide information for government programmes and activities.
