OCBC hit with SGX complaint over coal power financing in Indonesia

The complaint notes it excludes financing for new coal plants under its framework.

Market Forces has filed a complaint at the Singapore Exchange (SGX) against Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) over potential misleading conduct over finance enabling industrial coal power plants by Indonesia’s Harita Nickel Group.

The complaint said that the bank’s public disclosures may be materially misleading to investors, potentially breaching SGX rules on disclosure and sustainability reporting, according to a filing dated 23 February 2026.

The complaint outlines that OCBC has committed to excluding project financing for new coal power plants under its Responsible Financing Framework.

The framework sets thresholds for corporate financing, limiting coal power capacity or revenue to 25% for new clients and 50% for existing clients.

The company said that OCBC’s disclosures do not provide full information on its exposure to companies reliant on coal power, or the associated climate-related transition risks.

Harita currently operates 910 MW of coal power generation capacity and plans to nearly double its fossil output to 1,670 MW for its nickel operations on Obi Island, according to the company’s disclosures. Harita is only operating 40 MW of solar power capacity.

The group’s reported carbon emissions rose from 3.74 megatonnes of CO₂ equivalent in 2022 to 10.87 MtCO₂e in 2024, according to Market Forces.

Binbin Mariana, Asia Energy Finance Campaigner at Market Forces, said investors need full transparency on coal-related financing to properly assess climate risk.

“There must be greater transparency from all banks on how financing any companies whose operations rely on coal power plants is aligned with their own policies,” Mariana added.