Before launching our petition calling on ANZ to drop Denniston, we engaged in a round of correspondence with ANZ. We – and 350’s allies – approached ANZ directly first with our concerns, but unfortunately they refused to seriously engage with our concerns. This is why we have been forced to take to a public campaign, involving the thousands of New Zealanders – including ANZ customers – who are concerned about ANZ enabling climate destruction.
ANZ consistently lends more to fossil fuels than the other major NZ banks. This is why we have protested outside ANZ office’s before, and now will do it again.
For the sake of the climate we love, we simply cannot allow ANZ to enable Bathurst’s monstrous mine, on top of lending billions of dollars to other fossil fuel projects. It’s time for us citizens to rise up and pressure ANZ to break free from fossil fuels.
Below, you will find our correspondence with ANZ. Feel free to direct any thoughts on these letters to 350@350.org.nz
350’s letter to ANZ
11 March 2025
To: Antonia Watson, CEO of ANZ Bank New Zealand Limited
CC: Shayne Elliott, Chief Executive Officer of ANZ
CC: Paul O’Sullivan, Chairman of ANZ
CC: Keren Roberts; General Manager, Strategic Execution
Kia ora,
We are writing to urge you to live up to your promises on sustainability and end banking services with Bathurst Resources.
A 2021 study found 90% of coal and 60% of oil and gas reserves could not be extracted if there was to be even a 50% chance of keeping global heating below 1.5C, the temperature beyond which the worst climate impacts hit. We are extremely concerned about ANZ’s climate-wrecking company spending spree, loaning hundreds of millions to companies with some of the biggest coal and gas power expansion plans globally – GE Vernova, Siemens Energy, and San Miguel Corporation. ANZ has now blown past $20 billion in fossil fuel lending since the 2015 Paris agreement – significantly more than any of the other four major banks.
Bathurst Resources – an ANZ customer – is currently pursuing a fast-track application to mine 20 million tonnes of coking coal, much of which is on Denniston Plateau. This would have devastating impacts on the area’s unique ecosystem and rare species which live there. It would also add another hundred tonnes of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, emissions we can’t afford for a safe climate future. It is one of the most threatening projects being planned in New Zealand, in terms of the climate, biodiversity and sustainability.
As a signatory to the Climate Leaders Coalition and the Net Zero Banking Alliance, we urge you to end banking services with Bathurst Resources – the biggest, baddest coal company in New Zealand.
BNZ is already withdrawing banking services from coal mines, culminating in the cancellation of credit cards and the closure of “all bank accounts” by 2030. It’s time for ANZ to do the same with Bathurst.
In addition to this, as outlined in our ‘fossil-free banks’ campaign, we urge ANZ New Zealand to immediately halt all lending to fossil fuel companies and projects.
ANZ: It’s time for you to take responsibility for your role in the climate crisis. ANZ, you’ve got two choices: fund a future or fund destruction. The world is watching.
The undersigned,
Adam Currie, 350 Aotearoa
Barry Coates, Mindful Money
Cindy Baxter, Coal Action Network Aotearoa
Jenny Sahng, Climate Club
Marian Krogh, Protect Our Winters
Edwina Hughes, Peace Movement Aotearoa
ANZ’s response
24 March 2025
350’s counter-response to ANZ
25 March 2025
Kia Ora Miranda,
Thanks for your response. Perhaps a decade ago, ANZ’s climate measures may have been meaningful – but in 2025, amid a climate crisis and more meaningful action from other banks – ANZ’s minor commitments amount to planting a tree while funding a forest fire.
It is deeply unfortunate – for the sake of all of us – that ANZ continues to fund and invest in more fossil fuels than any other NZ bank. In addition, ANZ’s meek, limited commitments on new, thermal coal finance continue to enable lending to other forms of fossil fuels; from fossil gas (which is as bad as coal for the climate) to coking coal; such as that in Bathurst’s Denniston application. What is more – even existing thermal coal customers can continue to count on lending from ANZ to enable them to extract fossil fuels and blitz the climate that we all rely on. The revelations of ANZ’s fossil fuel finance revealed by the 2024 ‘banking on climate chaos’ report is alarming.
We reiterate that banks such as BNZ are going much further, already withdrawing banking services from coal mines, culminating in the cancellation of credit cards and the closure of “all bank accounts” by 2030. It’s time for ANZ to do the same with Bathurst. Of course, Kiwibank, SBS & the Co-operative bank have gone much further on climate, and are now leading fossil-free banks.
To prevent ANZ’s fossil fuel finance from enabling thousands more to be killed from the impacts of climate change – as per 4-year-old research from ‘Nature’ – ANZ needs to stop lending and banking services with fossil fuels – full stop. Until ANZ takes meaningful steps towards this goal, thousands of New Zealanders – including ANZ customers – will continue to do everything we can to change ANZ’s position, for the sake of all of us.
In hope for change,
Adam, for 350 Aotearoa