Natural Gas Ad Spiked Over Misleading Environmental Claims

An advert from Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association Limited (APPEA) has been banned from circulation after the advertising watchdog found it made unsubstantiated and misleading claims about the eco-credentials of natural gas.

Updated 14/7/23: Added comment from APPEA chief executive Samantha McCulloch and added the studies referenced by the APPEA during its Ad Standards hearing.

The ad formed part of a series of TV spots that were running on free-to-air, linear TV and claimed that natural gas was “50 per cent cleaner.”

However, the ad did not specify what natural gas was cleaner than.

It also went on to say that “As Australia shuts down coal, gas is picking up the load” and that electricity generated by natural gas “keeps the lights on.”

In response to a complaint about the unsubstantiated claim, APPEA defended the series of ads.

“As well as providing visual examples of how natural gas is used across Australia, the campaign centres on a number of substantiated claims, including the claim identified in the complaint: That gas is around 50 per cent cleaner than coal for generating electricity,” it said.

The industry body also added that:

“It is clear from the broader context of the ads that the relevant comparison is between coal and gas with respect to the generation of electricity.

“The language complained about relates specifically to that issue and would not be understood by an ordinary member of the public as a general statement about whether or not gas is ‘green’.”

However, the Ad Standards panel found APPEA’s response to be underwhelming, to say the least.

Considering the “50 per cent cleaner” claim and the “As Australia shuts down coal…” statement, the panel said that viewers could make an assumption that the two were linked but the comparison was not specific and nor did it make the basis for comparison clear.

The panel also found the lack of extra information provided by the APPEA in the advert to be of concern. During the hearing, the APPEA produced a number of reports, including from the International Energy Agency and the United States Energy Information Administration, to support the claim made during its advert.

Following the complaint, APPEA said that “The “Keeping the Country Running” public awareness campaign seeks to explain how gas is “ensuring reliable and essential energy for millions of Australian households and businesses” while supporting the transition to clean energy.

APPEA maintained that the advertising was clear and factual and that “taken in the context of the ‘Keeping the Country Running’ advertisement as a whole,” the statement that caused the complaint “is a representation that electricity generation using gas is 50 per cent cleaner than using coal in terms of greenhouse gas emissions.”

In a statement provided to B&T, APPEA chief executive Samantha McCulloch said:

“APPEA believes the advertising was clear, factual and does not agree with the Community Panel findings.

“The fact that gas produces around 50 per cent less carbon dioxide emissions than coal when used for power generation is widely established and recognised by leading authorities including the International Energy Agency (IEA), the US Government’s Energy Information Administration (EIA), the US Department of Energy and Australia’s former chief scientist, Dr Alan Finkel, in his review of the National Electricity Market.”

While this seems like a fairly open-and-shut case of failing to substantiate a claim in advertising, it points to a growing scepticism among the public of companies involved in fossil fuels and the extractive industries.

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