Aussie companies added to climate hit list

Another 10 Australian companies have been added to a global investment hit list pressuring the world's biggest polluters to take action on climate change.

Qantas, AGL, Origin and Woolworths are among 61 organisations added to the Climate Action 100+ initiative involving hundreds of global investors.

The new companies join mining giant BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Westfarmers on the list, which debuted at the French government's One Planet climate summit in December.

The project is backed by 289 investors with $30 trillion in assets, including five Australian superannuation funds and some of the country's biggest investment funds including AMP Capital, Australian Ethical Investment and Colonial First State.

Investors who hold shares in the listed companies will write to their boards and senior management asking them to clearly set out the board's accountability and oversight of climate risk and to start cutting emissions.

Since the program began, 18 per cent of focus companies have supported or committed to implementing climate-related financial risk disclosures and 22 per cent have set or committed to setting science-based greenhouse gas emission reduction targets beyond 2030.

AUSTRALIA'S CLIMATE ACTION 100+ LIST:

* Adelaide Brighton

* AGL

* BHP Billiton

* Bluescope Steel

* Boral

* Origin Energy

* Qantas

* Rio Tinto

* Santos

* South32

* Westfarmers

* Woodside Petroleum

* Woolworths

(Source: Climate Action 100+)