Fortescue has secured a Chinese yuan-denominated loan of about $2 billion (14.2 billion yuan) as Australia’s energy and metals group is betting on increased collaboration with China in green energy after halting clean energy projects in the U.S. and Australia.
Fortescue’s loan in Chinese yuan with participation from Chinese, Australian, and international lenders, is the first yuan-denominated Syndicated Term Loan of its kind by an Australian corporate, the group said on Friday, adding it is “a landmark transaction that reflects the depth of Fortescue’s long-standing relationships in China.”
“This isn’t just a financial transaction. It’s a signal of what is possible when partners are aligned in ambition,” said Fortescue’s founder and executive chairman, Andrew Forrest, a self-made billionaire in iron ore mining who is a proponent of clean energy solutions.
“As the United States steps back from investing in what will be the world’s greatest industry, China and Fortescue are advancing the green technology needed to lead the global green industrial revolution,” Forrest said.
Fortescue is reassessing timelines and pausing green energy project developments in the United States following the latest U.S. legislation to phase out renewable energy incentives, Forrest told the Wall Street Journal in an interview last month.
“We are big investors who always go where we’re loved,” Forrest told the Journal, and “if we stop feeling the love, timetables immediately get suspended.”
Fortescue said as early as in February that uncertain market conditions in the U.S. had prompted it to reconsider the development timeframes of its Arizona Project.
Fortescue planned Arizona Hydrogen—a venture to produce liquid green hydrogen in the United States. Initially, the project was expected to begin production by the middle of 2026.
Last month, Fortescue said that following a detailed review, it determined that the Arizona Hydrogen Project in the United States and the PEM50 green hydrogen project in Gladstone, Australia, will not proceed.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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