ANZ rules out finance for new gas pipelines in fresh blow to Beetaloo plan

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The plan to pipe gas from the Northern Territory's Beetaloo Basin to south-east Queensland has lost its last big-four bank. ANZ said in its 2026 Annual Report, signed off by the board and submitted to the ASX on Monday, that it will not directly finance new or expansion upstream oil and gas projects, or new midstream infrastructure dedicated solely to new upstream oil and gas projects such as new transmission pipelines.

The pipeline at stake is a roughly $10 billion, 1,561-kilometre project that Australia's biggest gas pipeline company, APA Group, has been working up to connect LNG export terminals in Queensland and the Northern Territory to the Beetaloo Sub-basin, about 500 kilometres south-east of Darwin. The basin is estimated to hold up to 500 trillion cubic feet of gas, a resource that industry and green groups alike describe as a potential carbon bomb, with estimates it could release 1.4 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases and lift Australia's total emissions by up to a fifth.

ANZ joins CommBank, NAB and Westpac in placing restrictions on finance for pipelines built for new oil and gas projects, and it has also ruled out signing up any new-to-bank upstream oil and gas customers as part of a 2026 review of its climate-related metrics. Market Forces, the sustainable investment group that has campaigned against fracking at Beetaloo, said the decision dealt a crushing blow to the ambitions of Beetaloo Energy, which holds 28.9 million acres of gas exploration tenements in the territory.

The policy language is taken directly from ANZ's annual report as quoted in the reporting, and the sequence is corroborated by the other banks' previously published positions. The report also leaves a door open: ANZ says it will consider exceptions case by case should national energy security issues arise and its assistance be sought. The bank's reasoning, as stated in the report, is that 1.5C-aligned scenarios such as those published by the International Energy Agency show the need for an absolute reduction in fossil fuel production and use. APA, for its part, says the project continues through early-stage access and approvals, with Coordinated Project status from the Queensland government.

Campaigners welcomed the move as the end of big-four backing for the pipeline. Rising Tide, which campaigned for ANZ to fall into line with the other three banks, called it a massive win for people power and said none of the big four will now bankroll the pipeline it describes as critical to unlocking the basin. Market Forces argued the project would also drive up living costs with some of the country's most expensive gas, threaten communities with toxic fracking, and fuel more destructive bushfires, floods and cyclones.

APA says it is forging ahead regardless, maintaining a strong balance sheet and a range of funding options at home and in global markets. The company says it hopes to reach a final investment decision on the North East Australia pipeline from 2028, with costs dependent on the final design and size.