2021 was a terrific year for the company, Glencore CEO Gary Nagle said on Tuesday, when the company reported record earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) of $21.3-billion, a record marketing performance Ebit of $3.7-bilion, and a record industrial business performance of $17.1-billion Ebitda.

As a result, net debt of $6-billion is now significantly below the London- and Johannesburg-listed company’s cap of $10-billion, which opened the way for a $4-billion distribution back to shareholders, made up of cash of $3.45-billion and a share buyback of $550-million. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.)

On the industrial side, Glencore reported strong demand across the world as countries emerged from Covid amidst a constrained supply environment, partly Covid, regulatory and geopolitically driven.

On top of that were low inventories across all commodities, across the world, resulting in very strong margins across the business.

“The market conditions remain favourable, we see dislocations in the market, we see arbitrage opportunities and hopefully a good result of 2022 as well,” Nagle said during an in-person and online results presentation covered by Mining Weekly.

CLIMATE-CHANGE STRATEGY

Glencore, which did not have a short-term target for Scope 1, 2 and 3 emission reductions going into 2021, now has a tight climate-change strategy: “By 2026, we will be down 15% across Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions,” said Nagle.

The company’s former medium-term emission target of a 40% reduction by 2035 has now been lifted to 50% off its 2019 base year.

“On the social side, it’s very difficult to report but we have had four fatalities in our business during 2021 and that is four too many,” said Nagle.

“We continue to work very hard, day and night, Peter Freyberg and his team putting significant effort into our Safe Work programme. We’ve revised our Safe Work programme. Safe Work 2 is being rolled out. We are seeing some excellent results, but so far not good enough. We are not there. We do believe in zero harm in our business and we do believe we can get there,” Nagle added.

A task force has been set up to promote diversity and inclusion, which is being driven through the business.

On the governance side, Glencore has what Nagle described as a best-in-class ethics and compliance programme.

“I truly believe it is a best-in-class programme and it’s not a standing-still product. We continue to work at it day in, day out to ensure that we’re a responsible and ethical operator,” he said.

As previously disclosed, Glencore is subject to a number of investigations by regulatory and enforcement authorities including the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the UK Serious Fraud Office and the Brazilian Federal Prosecutor’s office.

“As announced this morning, we also expect to resolve the US, UK and Brazilian investigations during the course of 2022 and we’ve recorded a provision for these costs in our accounts,” Nagle said.

FINANCIAL DETAILS

The 84% increase in Ebitda translated into free cash flow of $13-billion – “that’s the key number ultimately within any business. That’s what derives your debt reduction, your capacity to make distributions and payouts to one’s shareholders,” said Glencore CFO Steve Kalmin.

“The real kicker from H1 into H2 was in the coal business,” said Kalmin.

The coal Ebitda margin in 2021 was $50.6/t on 3% lower production compared with $11/t in 2020. Coal production of 103.3-million tonnes was 2.9-million tonnes lower.

“We’ve got a higher 12% annualised tailwind even going into 2022 at current macros,” added Kalmin.

Copper and cobalt contributed meaningfully, along with zinc, nickel and the ferroalloys business.

“Ferro itself is almost into a podium position. They had a great result from our South African business during the year, both in production and margins,” said Kalmin.

Earlier this month, Glencore reported 43% higher ferrochrome production in 2021, wi...

Industry organisation Minerals Council South Africa has recommitted to zero tolerance of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF), sexism, racism and bullying in the mining industry, after noting the release of a report by diversified global miner Rio Tinto exposing these problems across its operations.

The ‘Report into Workplace Culture’ at Rio Tinto gave the Minerals Council and its members reason to reflect and recommit to their efforts to address GBVF, sexism, racism and bullying at South African mining operations, the organisation says.

It notes it as an opportunity to contemplate the efficacy of the studies, guidelines, policies and interventions undertaken by the industry to resolve these problems.

“South African mining operations reflect the communities from which they draw their employees. The country has worrying levels of societal problems, including GBVF, sexism, racism and violence, with the world’s fourth-highest femicide rate. A fifth of women are assaulted by their partners, while half of reported assaults of women are perpetrated by close friends, family or spouses,” the council notes.

“There is no silver bullet to address the challenges faced by women in the mining industry, but we believe that, with continued targeted, highly focused work on the objectives set by the Minerals Council, and with the continued support of our member companies and their respective leaders, and our social partners, we will make a difference,” says Minerals Council president and Women in Mining Leadership Forum chair Nolitha Fakude.

The council says it, and its members, continue to acknowledge and address these entrenched, ingrained societal issues that manifest in their mines to make them safe, non-threatening places of work.

Women have been legally allowed to work underground in South Africa since 1996. As of September 2021, 64 500, or 14%, of the industry’s 455 200 employees are women.

The council and its members have set stretch targets to at least double the percentage of women in mining by 2025 and, ultimately, to work towards 30% to 40% women representation across the industry and 50% in management over the next decade.

This makes zero tolerance of GBVF and sexism imperative, the council emphasises.

An independent data-driven research project into GBVF at South Africa’s mines on behalf of the Minerals Council was conducted in 2021 across all race groups, sexes and ages of working adults.

The outcomes will form the base from which to implement effective interventions to decrease GBVF at mining operations.

The survey captured data from 2 054 respondents (58% women and 42% men) working in all major commodities, and it included 15 mining companies in seven provinces.

The survey found that, while the majority of those surveyed in the mining industry responded in a way that GBVF was not a concern for each of the assertions being tested, there was a consistent 30% who had concerns that it was.

The survey also found that there was mistrust of the reporting mechanisms.

The council resolved to conduct further qualitative research to unpack and understand the drivers of GBVF to address the concerns raised by the 30% of respondents, which included both women and men.

An assessment to be conducted early this year of mining infrastructure like change houses, underground ablution facilities, lighting and conveyances, will generate recommendations on how to make these safer for women.

Awareness campaigns and initiatives will be run to create trust and higher use of mining companies’ GBVF reporting mechanisms after the survey found a third of women are too afraid to speak up about GBVF or to report incidents for fear of being judged.

Red tape is delaying investment worth R90-billion in ready-to-go mining-related projects, at a time when the South African economy is in desperate need of such projects proceeding, to create jobs and to stimulate economic growth.

Projects worth R30-billion would be able to proceed if the 4 000-plus mining and prospecting rights backlog could be eliminated, and R60-billion worth of renewable energy projects could release 3 900 MW into the energy space if inhibiting bureaucracy were removed, Minerals Council South Africa has revealed in response to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation address (SoNA).

Against the background of the President appointing stalwart Sipho Nkosi to remove red tape, Minerals Council CEO Roger Baxter stated in a release to Mining Weekly: “We need to do things completely differently to get economic growth back to 5% per annum. The government should be the chief enabler and the private sector the chief doer," said Baxter, who cited the mining sector’s full and partial Covid-19 vaccination of 74% of its 450 000 employees with the assistance of the Department of Health as an example of the private sector’s ability to assist government.

The SoNA has opened the door for partnerships with the State to reverse the economic slump the government cannot address on its own.

Such partnerships could also extend to companies that mine iron-ore, coal, chrome, and manganese. These companies have experienced increasingly severe disruptions to their export logistics because of the inability of Transnet to provide a reliable rail and port service, owing to rampant crime on its railways and unavailability of locomotives. As a result, South Africa had lost at least R35-billion in potential exports in 2021, the council estimated.

Moreover, problems at Richards Bay had resulted in chrome exporters sending their products by road to Mozambique’s Maputo harbour. Since 2019, R2.9-billion worth of South African chrome has been exported through Maputo, which meant less revenue for Richards Bay and its owner Transnet Port Terminals. Ferrochrome and coal exports were also increasingly being sent through Maputo because of the inefficiencies of Transnet rail and ports.

The Minerals Council described Ramaphosa’s comments about bringing private investors into the Durban and Ngqura container terminals and private train operators on the container railway line between Durban and Johannesburg as a step in the right direction, “but for the mining industry the railways and ports servicing companies exporting bulk minerals need urgent attention and private sector participation to deliver efficiencies and productivity”.

On the energy front, the renewable energy project plans of Minerals Council member companies can substantially contribute to bridging the large electricity supply deficit in the country, diversify the country’s supply, reduce the sector’s carbon footprint, and stabilise costs.

“Bureaucratic and red tape delays have meant these projects cannot assist in easing South Africa’s energy deficit. An unbundling of Eskom by end-2022 is a key structural reform, while amendments to the Energy Regulation Act to create a competitive electricity generation market and the establishment of an independent state-owned electricity transmission company underpins that reform,” the council stated.

CRIME A PRESSING PROBLEM

“One of the most pressing problems the government must address immediately is crime, which has destroyed the country’s rail infrastructure, damaged investor confidence and has affected lives and livelihoods across the country,” the council stated.

“President Ramaphosa’s commitment to expedite legal action against those named in the Zondo State Capture reports, and the inclusion of the private sector to assist in these actions, will send a clear message to all South Africans about the government’s bona fides in ending corruption if guilty high-level politicians and business people are prosecuted and jailed.

“President Ramap...

After seven months of deadlocked wage negotiations with metals miner Sibanye-Stillwater, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), Solidarity, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) and Uasa will be holding a joint mass meeting on February 13 to address their members regarding the latest developments.

The mass meeting will take place at the Masizakhele Stadium in Driefontein, Carletonville.

The purpose of the upcoming meeting is to get a new, collective mandate from all members of the four trade unions.

All workers at Sibanye’s Kloof, Cooke, Burnstone, Beatrix and Driefontein operations have been invited to attend the mass meeting.

“Unity of workers is non-negotiable,” the NUM said in a statement on February 10.

The union leaders will report on developments regarding the conditional offer on wages and other conditions of employment tabled by Sibanye during the wage discussions that took place at the Birchwood Hotel & OR Tambo Conference Centre, in Gauteng, on February 4.

On February 7, Mining Weekly reported that Solidarity general secretary Gideon du Plessis believed an agreement might be “within reach” after what he called a “marathon negotiation session” between Sibanye and the unions the previous Friday, adding that Solidarity would encourage its members to consider the new offer favourably.

Sibanye previously was prepared to pay miners, artisans and officials represented by Solidarity a 4.1% increase for the first year; a 4.7% increase for the second year; and a 4.7% increase for the third year.

At the February 4 meeting, the offer was revised upwards to a 5% increase for three years running.

The 5% offer is above the average inflation rate for 2021. It is also higher than the South African Reserve Bank and National Treasury average inflation forecasts for 2022 and 2023. The revised offer follows a pattern of several years of above-inflation increases.

For category 4 to 8 employees, Sibanye previously offered an increase of R520 for year one; a R610 increase for year two; and a R640 increase for year three. Under the revised offer, this has been amended to an increase of R800 for all three years.

The revised offer was made after the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration issued a certificate of non-resolution.

The certificate permitted the unions to initiate a strike within 12 months. It also permitted Sibanye to implement a lock-out within the same period. Both parties, however, were required to give 48-hour notice to the other before enacting their rights in this regard.

So far, neither party has initiated either a lock-out or a strike, in the hopes that the matter could still be resolved through diplomacy.

Over the past year, the South African government has built on its successful hydrogen strategy to make major strides in positioning the country as a global leader in the green hydrogen market, President Cyril Ramaphosa stated during his State of the Nation Address (SoNA).

This positioning included the development of a hydrogen society roadmap for the next ten years as well as a green hydrogen strategy for the Northern Cape, supporting the development of a green hydrogen pipeline worth around R270-billion.

The president said that in the last year, South Africa had made important strides in the fight against climate change, while at the same time securing the country’s economic competitiveness.

For the first time, South Africa’s climate targets were, he said, compatible with limiting warming to 1.5°C.

Such limiting is the goal that all countries agreed to, as part of the Paris Climate Agreement.

Ramaphosa described the prevention of the worst effects of climate change as being essential.

Since he established the Presidential Climate Commission a little more than a year ago, it had done much work to support a just transition to a sustainable, inclusive, resilient and low-carbon economy, he said.

At the international climate conference in Glasgow last November, South Africa struck a historic R131-billion deal with the European Union, France, Germany, United Kingdom and the United States.

“This first-of-its-kind partnership will involve repurposing and repowering some of the coal plants that are reaching the end of their lives, and creating new livelihoods for workers and communities most impacted by this change,” he said.

To ensure that South Africa was able to derive the full benefit of this and other partnerships, the President has appointed former Reserve Bank Deputy Governor Daniel Mminele as head of the Presidential Climate Finance Task Team to lead the mobilisation of funds for the just transition.

The president said that investments in green hydrogen and electric vehicles would equip South Africa to meet the global clean energy future.

“We will be able to expand our mining industry in strategic minerals that are crucial for clean energy, like platinum, vanadium, cobalt, copper, manganese and lithium.

“We also have a unique opportunity in green hydrogen, given our world-class solar and wind resources and local technology and expertise.

“All of these measures – from structural reforms to support for SMMEs, investments in infrastructure and the emergence of new sectors – will drive a turnaround in economic growth driven by the private sector growth over the coming years,” Ramaphosa said.

“Properly managed, the energy transition will benefit all. Renewable energy production will make electricity cheaper and more dependable, and will allow our industries to remain globally competitive,” he added.

The President’s comments received widespread applause, particularly on LinkedIn, where Invest In Africa Services GM Garth Arthur described them as being “great first steps towards South Africa’s hydrogen economy. Let’s hope we can all pull together and make it the best success that it can possible be.”

Supporting remarks were also made by HySA Infrastructure Competence Centre, Professor Dmitri Bessarabov, Dr Bruno Pollet, president of the green hydrogen division at the International Association for Hydrogen Energy, and several academics.

This week Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer talks about the just energy transition providing South Africa with significant opportunities for new jobs; Glencore’s new global marketing relationship with United States Strategic Metals; and Webber Wentzel's warning that mining and energy directors could be liable for climate change risks.

Demand already foreseen is providing South Africa with the far-reaching and very welcome opportunity to create sufficient new jobs – “and then some” – to ensure a just energy transition away from the country’s current climate-threatening carbon intensity, Mining Weekly can report.

South Africa’s R100-billion-plus renewables industry has already been able to recruit highly skilled people from all sectors of South Africa, including from the coal sector, and the transition is providing South Africa a nice-to-have entry into a once-in-a-generation opportunity.

This involves moving out of a carbon-intensive sector, which has a finite horizon, into a new clean energy era, which has an infinite horizon in that it is largely based on the generation of power from sunshine and wind, which are delivered perennially with no price tag attached.

Moreover, the majority of the people working in the renewables industry are South African, Mainstream Renewable Power Africa GM Hein Reyneke told Creamer Media’s webinar on Advancing South Africa’s Energy Transition, which was held earlier this month.

EY Parthenon executive director Paul O’Flaherty facilitated a panel made up of Eskom Holdings Group CEO Andre de Ruyter, Impala Platinum (Implats) executive sustainable development Dr Tsakani Mthombeni and Reyneke, who reported that 100 % of the employees of Mainstream Renewable Power, for example, are South African – personnel who are delivering on their own energy future.

Mainstream Renewable Power had, he said, been able to recruit highly skilled people from all sectors of South Africa ­– from Eskom, from the coal sector, from the banking sector.

“We do foresee a challenge, maybe in a medium term, of getting enough human resource to deliver on the scale and demand that we foresee, but we view that as a nice problem to have, and it provides an opportunity for the renewables energy industry to deliver on our obligations in terms of job creation and the just energy transition.

In terms of financing the projects, local debt from local banks dominates the funding of local renewables projects.

In addition, there is also a considerable volume of foreign capital flowing through, with webinar attendees hearing that South Africa’s renewables industry has not experienced any significant challenges in raising the capital needed to deliver the projects that South Africa needs to bring back energy security – a need that Mthombeni emphasised as being pressing.

In opening, O’Flaherty drew attention to the fact that Europeans are driving their recovery from Covid through green investments and raising money to do that.

“Working back towards home, when I have been speaking to the government set-up and Presidential Climate Commission that became operational in January of last year, their first priority was to understand the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), and assist in landing that NDC, which has set significant new targets for South Africa to reduce its [emmission of] greenhouse gases from 2025 going through into 2030.

“We’ve got the Integrated Resource Plan 2019 in play. So, there are lots of dynamics in South Africa. We had COP26, it was called the finance COP, and South Africa has a commitment that we will be provided $8.5-billion.

“Then we’ve got the energy-intensive users who sit in the mining industry in South Africa,” said O’Flaherty, a former Eskom financial director.

In posing the first question to Mthombeni, O’Flaherty spoke of the Energy White Paper of the 1990s and the regional electricity distributors, or Reds, of the 2000s.

“We now talk about the unbundling of Eskom, we have an Integrated Resource Plan, which has a specific trajectory of reducing the coal content of the energy mix from more than 70% to 44%.

“Lots of intent, lots of good thought. But when you look at it, Tsakani, Implats is a major user of energy. It has 24/7 production, shareholders, employees, investors, communities and the supply chain who rely on Eskom. How do you think a...

Diversified mining company Anglo American announced on Wednesday that its new Aquila mine has achieved its first longwall shear of steelmaking metallurgical coal on schedule and on budget, marking the project’s final stages of construction and commissioning.

The new mine, which will have a total average yearly saleable production of around five-million tonnes of hard coking coal, benefits from low capital intensity owing to existing infrastructure and systems from adjacent operations being used.

“Aquila offers us highly attractive returns and margins at conservative long-term consensus prices,” Anglo Bulk Commodities CEO Themba Mkhwanazi stated in a media release to Mining Weekly.

Owned 70% by Anglo and 30% by Mitsui, Aquila has been developed as a technologically advanced underground mine, leveraging advancements in underground automation technology, remote operations and data analytics.

The project came in within the budgeted attributable cost of $226-million.

The mine’s two longwalls allow operations to continue without the downtime usually required for longwall moves. Both longwalls will be sequentially operated from an on-surface, site-based remote operations centre.

Located near Middlemount in central Queensland, Australia, Aquila extends the life of Anglo’s existing Capcoal underground operations by seven years, after the company’s nearby Grasstree mine reached its end of life in recent weeks. Anglo’s Capcoal complex comprises Aquila, Capcoal opencast mine, Grasstree, the coal handling and preparation plant and associated infrastructure.

Anglo metallurgical coal business CEO Tyler Mitchelson described the safe original-schedule startup of longwall mining at Aquila, despite the effects of the pandemic, as an important milestone for the metallurgical coal business that provides ongoing support to the Middlemount community and the Queensland economy.

The mine supports around 600 ongoing operational roles for Anglo’s Queensland-based workforce, including providing continuity of employment for the company’s Grasstree mining team.

Diversified mining and marketing company Glencore has entered a strategic global marketing relationship with United States Strategic Metals, formerly Missouri Cobalt.

Involved is a long-term offtake agreement for 100% of the US company’s products, which include cobalt and nickel sulphates, lithium products and copper cathode.

Significant embedded prepayment forms part of the deal, which includes both companies also exploring other commercial arrangements relating to recycling and raw materials sourcing to underpin the ramp-up of a hydrometallurgical processing facility being developed by US Strategic Metals.

As a vertically integrated cobalt and nickel producer, US Strategic Metals is described as being positioned to supply “clean, domestic and ethically sourced battery metals” required to meet the demand for electric vehicles and lithium-ion batteries.

The North American company is reportedly in the final stages of constructing a proprietary hydrometallurgical processing facility which will allow it to begin production of large-scale quantities of battery-grade products, starting in the third quarter of this year, Glencore stated in a media release to Mining Weekly.

Glencore US cobalt marketing Ash Lazenby stated in the release that Glencore would be supporting US Strategic Metals towards becoming a leading domestic supplier of battery metals critical to combating climate change and realising the energy transition.

“We look forward to working collaboratively with the US Strategic Metals team and leveraging our complementary skill sets,” said Lazenby.

US Strategic Metals CEO Stacy W Hastie said US Strategic Metals would benefit from Glencore’s customer relationships across the electric vehicle supply chain, including with global auto original equipment manufacturers and battery manufacturers.

Additionally, proceeds from prepayment would allow US Strategic Metals to accelerate the construction and commissioning of its hydrometallurgical processing facility, said Hastie.

OTHER RECENT PARTNERSHIPS

Earlier this month, Glencore clinched a battery recycling joint venture with battery pioneer Britishvolt to develop an ecosystem for battery recycling in the UK. This ecosystem will be anchored at a new recycling plant located at the Britannia Refined Metals (BRM) operation in Northfleet, a Glencore company. The project saw a return to recycling for BRM, securing existing jobs and creating new ones.

Once complete, the recycling facility will have an expected processing capacity of at least 10 000 t/y of lithium-ion batteries, including but not limited to battery manufacturing scrap, portable electronics batteries and electric vehicle packs.

The facility, which will process all Britishvolt’s battery scrap from its factory in Blyth, is expected to be operational by mid-2023, with the long-term aim of being 100% powered by renewable energy.

The partnership will also look to develop other recycling activities such as the refining of black mass into battery grade raw materials.

Late last month, Glencore and Managem partnered to produce cobalt from recycled cobalt, nickel and lithium, at Managem’s Compagnie de Tifnout Tiranimine (CTT) hydrometallurgical refinery in Morocco, North Africa.

A five-year tolling agreement for 1 200 t/y of recycled cobalt, as well as nickel hydroxide and lithium carbonate, is planned by Glencore and CTT to support the electric vehicle industry in achieving its metal recycling targets.

The partnership is conditional on a feasibility study to assess the commercial viability of modifying and deploying the CTT refinery for recovering cobalt, nickel and lithium from black mass – a refinery feed comprised of recycled lithium-ion batteries.

The feasibility study will focus on achieving high recoveries and a low carbon footprint. It is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter.

Glencore will leverage its long-established ability in sourcing and recycling cobalt and nickel-bearing products at its Canadian ...

Directors face potential liability if they fail to carry out their fiduciary duties to curb climate change risks and do not make complete disclosures about climate-related risks, Webber Wentzel partner Merlita Kennedy and associate Tobia Serongoane stated on Tuesday.

In a release to Mining Weekly, the law firm outlined how climate change, economic inequality, and numerous other issues fundamental to the success and sustainability of companies, are placing greater responsibility on boards of directors in the mining and energy space.

“The traditional assumption about climate change was that it was purely an environmental, or ethical, concern. Companies viewed it as an issue of moral significance, but not one which posed any real risks beyond reputation.

“This is no longer the case. Climate change is now a corporate governance issue which presents potentially enormous financial and litigious risks to companies, especially in the mining and/or energy sectors. The standard of care required from company directors with regard to climate change has risen and continues to rise,” Kennedy and Serongoane stated.

Climate change litigation has dramatically increased in recent years, owing to increased global urgency to tackle climate change, the stated.

They pointed out that in May last year, Shell became the first company in history to be held legally liable for contributing to climate change, when a Dutch court ordered it to cut its global carbon dioxide emissions by 45% by 2030 – and ruled it was responsible for its customers’ emissions too.

Recently, in South Africa, the High Court in Makhanda, Eastern Cape, blocked Shell from seismic testing to explore for oil and gas in the Indian Ocean.

“These recent cases suggest that boards should be more sensitive to ‘red flags’ on climate-related risks in their management and reporting obligations. There is a well-established tendency, in the US and some other jurisdictions, for plaintiffs to cite directors of a company as defendants alongside the company, whenever possible, as they could be additional sources of potential recovery,” they wrote.

Under the sub-heading ‘Understanding climate change and its impact on directors' fiduciary duties’, Kennedy and Serongoane pointed to Section 76 of the Companies Act 71 of 2008 codifying the standard of directors’ conduct.

“The standard sets the bar very high for directors, with personal liability if the company suffers loss or damage because the director’s conduct did not meet the prescribed standard. Section 76 (3) of the South African Companies Act and Section 172 of the UK Companies Act may be wide enough to include a duty for the directors to take into account climate risks in decision-making.

“In the context of climate risk assessment and management, breach of Section 76(3) may occur in similar circumstances to those discussed above, namely, where climate risk poses a foreseeable and material financial risk to the company and directors have not considered that risk or have failed to do so adequately.

“Directors may also breach this section if they have assessed climate risk but failed to exercise reasonable care, skill and diligence in managing it. The adequacy of the resources available to the company to deal with climate change risk should be objectively assessed, and external expertise sought, as appropriate,” they stated.

DUTY OF DISCLOSURE

Kennedy and Serongoane described the growing investor demand for climate and environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosure as being “tremendous”, with shareholders expecting companies to report more fully and transparently on climate risks, and directors potentially being held liable for misleading or deceptive conduct for “greenwashing” – such as making “net zero” commitments without reasonable evidence.

Under Section 29 (2) of the Companies Act, financial statements prepared by the company must not be false or misleading.

Moreover, Principle 5 of the King IV report required the board to ensure th...