Adani pays the price for financing fossil fuels 

February 22, 2023

More investors sell their shares in Adani Group as the firm continues to use green money to finance one of the world’s largest coal mines. 

On February 10, a public filing revealed Adani is using stock from its green companies as collateral in a credit facility that is helping to finance the Carmichael coal mine.  

Adani’s involvement in the coal mine caused KLP to sell its entire holding of shares in Adani Green Energy, which is the renewable energy arm of Adani Group. 

The pension scheme provider decided to sell its shares after it blacklisted coal from its portfolios and amid concerns that its investment could indirectly support fossil fuels. 

Kiran Aziz, head of responsible investing at KLP, said any indirect financing of the Carmichael project would represent a “breach of commitments.” 

The Carmichael coal mine, which is based in Australia, has been the subject of many protests and legal challenges for its potential to significantly increase greenhouse gas emissions. 

Opposers have also criticized the coal mine for its detrimental impact on indigenous communities. 

Ulf Erlandsson, chief executive of Anthropocene Fixed Income Institute, which has been tracking the Adani Group since 2020, said: “Investments in other parts of the Group are leaking into the funding of Carmichael,”  

“Investors [that] have restrictions on funding greenfield thermal coal mining should revisit potential exposures across the whole of Adani Group.” 

Adani Group’s financing of the coal mine is the firm’s latest financial agreement to receive scrutiny from ESG investors. 

An increasing number of investors have sold shares of the Group, since the release of a report by Hindenburg Research. 

On January 24, the research company accused Adani of fraud and market manipulation in the report. 

This news follows longstanding concerns about Adani's involvement in the Carmichael coal mine, with the controversy extending back to 2017.