We need to talk
If this was your relationship to leave, you would have. But you can't. It's clear we should have begun rapid action on climate change some time ago. There simply aren't enough low energy lightbulbs and better choices to deliver the scale of change our world so clearly needs. The time for excuses is over - we need to break up with fossil fuels.
Governments need to act faster. All fossil fuel subsidies should be removed. All barriers to green industry should be eliminated. Politicians across the world have the opportunity to lead their economies towards growth. Businesses need to be held accountable.
We are no longer waiting for the solutions to be invented. The businesses that invest first will lead the market towards low cost energy as fossil fuel prices rise in cost and volatility.
Why? Lethal Humidity.
Global warming is here. Extreme weather, floods, storms – we are living the impacts of climate change now. But there is another side to global warming, one that you may not even know about.
Rising temperatures are forcing up humidity. For every degree of warming, humidity rises 7 per cent. This rise in humidity and heat due to fossil fuels is already putting people all over the world at risk.
Why? Because when humidity is high, even relatively low temperatures of around 35C can kill people within hours. When it’s humid, your sweat can’t evaporate and you struggle to get rid of the heat your body is constantly generating. As a result, your body temperature rises, and rises, and rises. When it hits 41C, you can get heatstroke and ultimately die. If you have a reliable air conditioner you’ll be fine – but power is not reliable during heatwaves and 15 per cent of people most at risk don’t even have air conditioning.
Humidity is rising because the hotter the planet gets, the more water is evaporating from our oceans – and hot air can hold more humidity. It’s dangerous for two other reasons. Water vapour is a natural greenhouse gas – so it’s accelerating global warming. It’s also supercharging energy in the atmosphere, driving increasingly violent and deadly rainfall, floods and storms.
The industrial world is responsible. Business leaders and politicians are responsible. The greatest greenwash in the world is that the climate crisis is your fault. Fossil fuels are putting your life, and that of your kids and your grandkids, at risk.
Make us change.
The new horizon
One major company is making the clean break first… us. We are Fortescue. We are a heavy emitting business, but we are changing.
We are seeking to decarbonise our business, working towards real zero emissions (scope 1 and 2) by 2030.
If we can do it, so can other businesses by:
- Creating green energy to help replace fossil fuels.
- Designing green technology to enable real zero.
- Asking trade partners to do the same.
In FY23, Fortescue Energy continued to develop a dual-fuel ammonia powered ship engine. In the second half of calendar year 2023, it will undergo its first sea trials onboard the 75 metre Green Pioneer.
Battery Electric Trucks
Battery electric trucks are part of the future. We have pioneered the technology. We hope that the example we set paves the way for all of industry. We have:
- The first battery electric haul truck prototype currently being tested at our 192 million tonne Iron Ore operation in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.
- Expansion of Fortescue WAE battery and electric power train production operations in the United Kingdom.
- Advanced development of technology and Intellectual Property to underpin decarbonisation of Fortescue Metals.
As part of the investment in our decarbonisation roadmap, we intend to deploy an additional 2-3GW of renewable energy generation and battery storage. We're also developing other world-leading zero-emission prototypes and products, such as:
- A regenerating battery electric locomotive.
- A prototype hydrogen-powered generator to recharge electric mobile equipment.
- A 3MW and 6MW fast charger.
- A battery electric hydrogen fuel cell truck.
Electrolysers
We are making excellent progress with the electrolyser technology developed by Fortescue Energy. We are implementing the technology in our business:
- Completed construction works on the 2GW Gladstone electrolyser manufacturing facility. Commission and fit-out is underway.
- Commenced manual assembly of in-house designed proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser stacks, with automated assembly line due for delivery and installation.
Green Hydrogen & Green Ammonia
We firmly believe that Green Hydrogen and Green Ammonia are a strong alternative to fossil fuel. Green hydrogen is a practical and implementable solution that will revolutionise the way we power our planet, while decarbonising heavy industry and creating jobs globally. It can be:
- Used to power hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles, including trucks and drill rigs – particularly for long distances and heavy haulage.
- Used to create synthetic aviation fuels to replace aviation kerosene, or as hydrogen in fuel-cells, helping to decarbonise the aviation industry.
- Used to replace fossil fuel-based hydrogen in industrial processes.
- Made into green ammonia for use as a potential fuel for shipping and rail and to create green fertilisers for the agriculture industry.
We are heavily involved in developing projects around the world to unlock the potential of these fuels for our business and the rest of the world. Our current projects are:
- Gibson Island, Australia. With Incitec Pivot Limited, a proposed 550MW green hydrogen and green ammonia facility is currently in the front end engineering design (FEED) stage.
- Pecem, Brazil. A proposed green hydrogen and green ammonia facility at the Port of Pecem, Ceará, is in the pre-feasibility phase.
- Phoenix, USA. Across the US, we are actively developing several potential green hydrogen projects including near Phoenix, Arizona.
- Holmaneset, Norway. A proposed 300MW green ammonia facility is currently in the pre-feasibility stage with renewable energy secured via a long-term conditional Power Purchase Agreement with Statkraft to support our operational plans.
Breaking free
You have power with every vote, every share, every purchase.
You may think it’s difficult to break free from fossil fuels and influence a business like ours, but that’s not true. You can exercise your rights with where you put your money and who you vote for. You have the power to hold business to account.
Write a letter to your local political leader. If they are not doing enough to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies, vote for someone who will. Walk away from fund managers choosing to invest in fossil fuel corporations. Consume renewable sources of energy.
Its time.
Be the change.
Need further resources?
Breaking up with fossil fuels | UNDP
What You Can Do About Climate Change | US EPA
Climate Change Committee (theccc.org.uk)
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Professor Steve Sherwood, ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate
Extremes, University of New South Wales
“We know heatwaves are getting worse due to global warming. But a lot of people and policymakers aren’t yet aware that rising humidity is supercharging these events. India, the Middle East and China already experience deadly heat and humidity, and the risk is rising rapidly.”
“High humidity at temperatures of just 31 to 35˚C and up prevents people from cooling down by sweating, leading to heatstroke and death. But rising humidity is dangerous for other reasons too: it’s fuelling more violent storms and floods, and water vapour is itself a powerful greenhouse gas. We need to act now.”
“Climate change is not reversible. Its impacts are not distant or abstract. The science shows it will lead to the deaths of our fellow human beings, putting at risk hundreds of millions of people if we don’t act quickly. This finding is backed by scientific consensus and the IPCC’s 2023 Synthesis Report.”