Super funds’ fossil fuel exposure draws $33bn scrutiny

Funds are facing criticism after a new analysis found $33 billion is invested by super funds in companies expanding coal, oil and gas globally.

Australia’s top 30 superannuation funds were found to have more than $33 billion invested in companies expanding fossil fuels globally, according to new analysis released by Market Forces.

The research, based on the latest portfolio disclosures, showed funds held more than three times as much in a global list of 200 companies with the largest fossil fuel expansion plans, known as the FFX 200, than the $9.7 billion they had invested in clean energy companies.

The report found the FFX 200 cohort had underperformed major sharemarket indices, while an index of clean energy companies achieved more than double — 104 per cent — the investment returns of FFX 200 companies over the seven years from November 2018 to November 2025.

VIEW ALL

View all

Brett Morgan, head of Australian campaigns at Market Forces, said: “It’s outrageous that Australia’s largest super funds are propping up the expansion of coal, oil and gas with billions of dollars of our retirement savings.

“Super funds are failing to demand and deliver an end to fossil fuel expansion as the impacts of climate change worsen, threatening member returns.”

For the first time, Market Forces assessed the financial performance of FFX 200 companies against major global indices, including the Bloomberg World Index, MSCI World Index, S&P 500 and ASX 300.

It found the expansion-focused companies underperformed across one, three and seven-year periods, with the ASX 300 being the only benchmark to underperform the FFX 200 over one year.

Only one of the largest 30 funds, Australian Ethical, had no exposure to FFX 200 companies, which include Woodside Energy, Santos and Whitehaven Coal, according to Market Forces.

Market Forces reported that emissions from the coal, oil and gas expansion plans of these companies equated to 300 years of Australia’s annual national emissions and would exceed the entire carbon budget for limiting warming to 1.5°C before other global emissions were considered.

“Pollution from coal, oil and gas expansion poses an unacceptable threat to a stable climate, economy, and super fund members’ returns,” Morgan said. “A growing number of members expect their retirement savings to be building a clean energy future, yet super funds are backing the world’s most unforgivable climate polluters.”

“Super funds must secure a stable future for members to retire into by turning the blowtorch on coal, oil and gas companies and demanding an end to fossil fuel growth.”

Additionally, the report outlined varied levels of exposure across major default investment options.

As at 30 June 2025, AMP’s MySuper 1970s option had the highest proportion of its share investments in FFX 200 companies at 7.3 per cent, followed by Commonwealth Super Corp’s PSS Default at 7.2 per cent and Australian Retirement Trust’s Lifecycle High Growth Pool at 7.1 per cent.

The least exposed options were Australian Ethical’s Balanced option at 0.0 per cent, ESSSuper’s Balanced Growth Managed option at 4.2 per cent and State Super’s Balanced option at 4.5 per cent.

Only seven investment options reduced their exposure to FFX 200 companies as a share of total equity holdings between December 2021 and June 2025.

These were UniSuper Balanced (-2.6 per cent), Prime Super MySuper Balanced (-1.6 per cent), CareSuper Balanced MySuper (-1.3 per cent), IOOF Balanced Growth (-0.7 per cent), ESSSuper Balanced Growth Managed (-0.3 per cent), Hostplus Balanced (-0.2 per cent) and GESB My West State Super (-0.1 per cent).

Australian Ethical maintained zero exposure, while MLC held the same level of exposure across both disclosure periods.

According to Market Forces, funds from BUSSQ and State Super were excluded from this finding due to their December 2021 portfolio holdings not being provided upon request.