Glencore disagrees with both those camps and said it was one of the few companies that ran underground, open pit, thermal and hard coking coal mines in Australia.
Glencore has urged the Albanese government to stick to its original principles and use a single industry average to determine the emissions limits of all Australian coal mines.
“Glencore wants the government to stick to its policy principles for the Safeguard Mechanism rather than going down a risky pathway of doing special deals,” said a spokesman for the Swiss miner.
“Our focus is on continuing to engage with Government and ensuring that whatever approach is adopted for coal baselines is simple, transparent and equitable.”
Those pushing the government to create distinct industry averages for underground mines or coking coal mines have warned that Australia’s two major steel mills – BlueScope’s Port Kembla facility and Sanjeev Gupta’s Whyalla asset – are supplied by coking coal mines that have some of the highest carbon footprints of any coal mines in Australia.
Those coking coal mines would face a higher than average burden to reduce emissions if a single “industry average” is adopted.
Origin Energy’s Eraring power station – which struggled to secure sufficient coal last year and indirectly triggered the NSW government to create a domestic coal reservation – is also supplied by underground thermal coal mines that have a very high carbon footprint.
But Glencore said the government’s plan already provided protections for trade exposed industries, so there was no need to make extra provisions.
“Mechanisms like Trade Exposed Baseline Adjusted (TEBA) already exist under the safeguard mechanism to support facilities which are emission intensive, trade exposed businesses,” said Glencore in a statement.
The Albanese government has signalled that it is willing to continue negotiating with coal miners to ensure the final methodology is fit for purpose.
The new emissions limits will take effect from July 1.