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Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) shares are up 2.57% today to $21.95 apiece amid news that the miner's green subsidiary is looking to expand its investments in the United States.
According to reporting in The Australian, Fortescue's executive chair Andrew Forrest says the company has been encouraged to invest in the US instead of Australia.
This is because of incentives contained in the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) for green energy projects.
The IRA includes $US437 billion worth of subsidies for new energy projects.
Forrest made the comments at a conference in Sydney.
He said the head of Fortescue Future Industries (FFI), Mark Hutchison, has put forward three new "significant" proposals for green hydrogen investment in the US to the company's board.
Hutchison is flying to the US today for meetings.
Forrest said the US Inflation Reduction Act had "completely changed the landscape" for FFI.
He said:
We are going to have to work hard to keep Australia competitive (with the US). I can see us going backwards.
Forrest has been a leader among Australian companies on climate change and renewable energy.
He has travelled the world putting together partnership deals with many governments and businesses.
Together, they will develop renewable energy, green hydrogen, and green ammonia projects through FFI.
As we reported previously, FFI worked with the US government, the White House, and Senator Joe Manchin to support the IRA.
Hutchinson described the bill's passage as "game changing for the green hydrogen market globally and a brilliant outcome for FFI".
He said green hydrogen will become a multi-trillion-dollar market and "our role is to ensure FFI remains at the forefront of this global movement, to move at a rapid pace to capture this new market …".
He added that FFI is "acknowledged internationally already" as a leading developer of green hydrogen.
Fortescue shares are up by 7.65% in the year to date and up 24% over the past 12 months.
