Brookfield lodges first build-to-rent DA
Brookfield is moving ahead with its first build-to-rent project in the Australian market by lodging a development application for its Portside Wharf precinct in the Brisbane suburb of Hamilton.
The 560-lot development includes one, two and three bedroom apartments spread over two towers set on opposing diagonals. Facilities will include a building concierge, pool, podium recreation spaces, barbeque areas, a wellness spa, co-working space, gym, cinema, private dining rooms, resident workshop, EV charging and a dog wash. The precinct already has retail and cafés.
Brookfield said it lodged the development application under Economic Development Queensland’s (revised Northshore Hamilton Development Scheme released in October 2022.
The precinct will be home to the main athlete village in the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Fender Katsalidis will undertake the architecture and interior design after winning a design competition.
Brookfield is an experienced BTR investor overseas in what is called “Multi-family” developments and now has $18 billion in assets under management including 61,000 apartments in the US, Europe, Brazil and China.
Atlassian issues blunt message to companies chasing net zero
Atlassian has released a guide for companies aspiring to net zero emissions based on its own experience, which contains candid advice: “Don’t F&*k! The Planet.”
The technology firm founded by Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar said companies that commit to a science-based target, as it has done, “can’t make net zero claims” until they have cut their direct emissions by 90 per cent. They can then use carbon offsets to go the rest of the way.
Atlassian joined RE100, a group of companies that target 100 per cent renewable energy use, in 2019. The company’s new Sydney headquarters at Central is set to be the world’s tallest “hybrid timber” tower that it claims will have 50 per cent less embodied carbon than its steel and concrete equivalents.
Chinese companies embrace ESG
Chinese investors, corporates and policy makers are increasingly cognisant of environmental, social and governance concerns according to new research from asset manager Fidelity International.
Fidelity’s ESG priorities in China: How companies in China are approaching ESG report consulted 262 C-suite and director-level executives based in listed companies on the Chinese mainland and found that their companies are developing frameworks to incorporate ESG into their organisation’s activities.
Many are acting in the face of added scrutiny from foreign investors and in the export markets where Chinese companies are selling their products. More than half of the companies surveyed have publicly announced an ESG or sustainability strategy, with 18 per cent planning to do so in future, the study found.
Almost two-thirds publish annual ESG reports with a further 29 per cent planning to do so within the next three years.
“Amongst the surveyed companies that have yet to publish ESG reports, the second most cited reason is lack of interest from investors. Interestingly, among those already publishing ESG reports, 43 per cent also cited investor expectations as an important driver of ESG strategy, shedding light on the role investors play in promoting progress,” Tina Chang, Associate Director, Sustainable Investing at Fidelity International said.
Energy Efficiency Council recognises professor Tony Arnel
The Energy Efficiency Council has honoured professor Tony Arnel with a Life Fellowship.
The honour was established in 2017 to “recognise the outstanding contribution of individuals to the Energy Efficiency Council and those who have played a decisive role in the development of the sector,” the council said in a statement.
Arnel was president of the council from 2014 to 2021 and was selected by an independent panel which noted his “undisputed” contribution.
“As the Council approaches the end of the second three-year strategy developed under Tony’s presidency, energy efficiency and demand side management are now viewed as critical to the successful delivery of energy policy in Australia,” the panel said.
Arnel is Industry Professor in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and the Built Environment at Deakin University and Chair of the university’s Engineering Advisory Board, and holds a number of private sector directorships including Forest and Wood Products Australia.