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A group of Indigenous Australians filed a complaint against 20 large Australian pension funds for investing in Santos Ltd’s[STO:AU] two gas projects, alleging that the funds have a responsibility to prevent adverse human rights impacts of the companies they invest in, as reported by Reuters on April 26. The traditional landowners who filed the complaint claimed that the Barossa and Narrabri gas projects will threaten their culture, livelihood, and the environment. One member of a fund has requested information from the fund under Australian corporations law to justify their investment in Santos. The five largest pension funds, which collectively manage over AUD1.7tr, did not respond to requests for comment.
This move by the Indigenous landowners follows a previous appeal by the Gomeroi people against a permit for the Narrabri gas project, which the National Native Title Tribunal had allowed Santos to proceed with. Santos had its appeal to resume drilling on the Barossa gas project rejected by the federal court in December, and it has since stated that it will apply for fresh approvals for its biggest project. Santos’ Barossa gas project is a proposed offshore gas development in the Timor Sea, while the Narrabri gas project is an onshore gas development in northwest New South Wales. The Gomeroi people’s ongoing appeal against the Narrabri gas project is based on the project’s significant impacts on their cultural heritage, including sacred sites and artifacts. The Indigenous Australians who filed the human rights complaint against the pension funds called for the funds to divest from Santos’ gas projects and to adopt policies aligned with the Paris Agreement on climate change.
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