The Australian Gas Infrastructure Group (AGIG) has removed a LinkedIn post following a complaint lodged by the Environmental Defenders Office on behalf of Comms Declare. The post asserted that gas cooktops have lower annual emissions and energy costs compared to electric alternatives in Victoria.

The Ad Standards Community Panel found that the advertisement breached three sections of the Environmental Claims Code. The complaint highlighted that the advertisement omitted key factors in its calculations, such as methane emissions, the efficiency of induction cooktops, and emissions from electric cooktops powered by a renewable grid or home solar systems.

AGIG, owned by a consortium led by Hong Kong’s CK Infrastructure Holdings, operates the Dampier Bunbury Pipeline, Australian Gas Networks, and Multinet Gas Networks. The group denied that the advertisement was misleading in its response to the ruling.

The LinkedIn post by AGIG stated: “In Victoria, gas cooktops have the lowest annual energy cost ($18) and lowest annual emissions (32 kg CO2-3). In contrast, electric coil or plate cooktops have the highest energy cost ($47) and emissions (146 kg CO2-e).”

The Ad Standards Community Panel concluded that “…the Environmental Claims in the advertisement were not substantiated and verifiable and did not include sufficient detail to allow evaluation of the claim.”

The advertisement was published as Victoria’s Gas Substitution Roadmap aims to reduce reliance on gas in homes, a move that could potentially impact AGIG’s profits.

Comms Declare, a climate communications charity representing over 100 organisations and communications professionals, welcomed the decision. Founder of Comms Declare, Belinda Noble, said, “Gas companies are increasingly using LinkedIn to argue against cuts to climate pollution, and we’re pleased that their half-truths and unsupported claims are finally being challenged by regulators.”