Seven reasons why BHP — a giant coal miner — wants to stop lobbying FOR coal

BHP is throwing its weight around to try to stop the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) saying what most miners want on climate change.

What coal company wants lobbyists not to lobby for coal?

The gauntlet is down. Most miners want less “climate action” so the MCA wants to dump the renewables target. It’s been an effective political force serving miners across Australia. But BHP is its largest member, providing 17% of the funding. BHP is so big, it can do its own deals. Right now, it’s serving its larger masters and testing to see if it can beat a body meant to serve all the other miners into line.

This is a tough test for the MCA. But if they fold and serve their largest client, effectively burning off almost all their smaller clients, then the smaller clients should quit and form their own new entity. They provide 80% of the MCA funding, and for the MCA not to lobby for Australia’s second largest export industry is bonkers. In Australia, the MCA is influential enough that their anti-mining tax campaign is credited as helping to bring down a Prime Minister and when industries want to threaten governments they […]