Liberty Mutual stops covering Australian coal mine
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Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. has agreed not to insure a controversial Australian coal mine, but the mine has reportedly secured coverage elsewhere.
The Boston-based mutual insurer joined 13 other insurers and reinsurers in agreeing not to insure the project after a public campaign, including a small protest outside of the insurer’s offices during the Risk & Insurance Management Society Inc.’s annual conference in April.
“In January, Liberty Mutual informed the appropriate parties that we will not be participating in the insurance program for the anticipated operational phase of the Carmichael mining project,” a Liberty Mutual spokeswoman said via email on Friday.
“It’s great to see Liberty Mutual joining Axa, Allianz, QBE, Swiss Re and other global insurers in refusing to insure the Adani Carmichael coal mine,” Elana Sulakshana, energy finance campaigner at the Rainforest Action Network, said in a statement on Thursday. “Now the question is, what insurance company would even consider touching this project when so many of their peers have turned their backs on it?”
The San Francisco-based network this week launched a campaign calling on major U.S. insurers to stop insuring coal and tar sands completely while an Australia-based NGO called Market Forces went to Liberty Mutual’s offices in Melbourne to ask the company if it would be insuring the project, according to the statement.
“Given its climate impacts, it is extraordinary that any insurer would support this dangerous project,” said Pablo Brait, Campaigner at Market Forces. “AIG, Berkshire Hathaway and Chubb must publicly confirm that they are not involved in this project or suspicion will remain that they are part of the insurance package that Adani claims to have for this climate-wrecking new coal mine.”
The other insurers could not immediately be reached for comment.
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A small group of people protested against Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. as part of a public campaign to pressure the company to commit to not insuring a controversial Australian coal mine project.
