Wodgina Lithium Project

Wodgina Lithium Project is a facility operated by MARBL Lithium Operations Pty Ltd in WA. Like all covered facilities, industrial operations generate significant emissions. Under Australia's Safeguard Mechanism, Wodgina Lithium Project must keep its annual emissions below a stepping-down baseline — or purchase carbon credits to cover any overage.

In 2024–25, Wodgina Lithium Project reported emissions of 170 kt against a baseline obligation of 138 kt — an overage of 32 kt. The facility covered the 32 kt overage by purchasing 31,520 Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) — credits generated by carbon abatement projects elsewhere in Australia such as soil carbon farming, avoided land clearing, and landfill gas capture.

Purchasing credits is legal and intended by the Safeguard Mechanism's design — the policy deliberately allows facilities to choose between cutting on-site emissions or funding abatement elsewhere in the economy. Whether credit purchases represent genuine long-term decarbonisation depends on whether the facility's absolute emissions are trending down over time. The chart above shows the trajectory since reporting began. This question applies to all covered facilities under the Safeguard Mechanism, not Wodgina Lithium Project specifically.

Among 8 comparable facilities, 8 reported emissions above their baseline in 2024–25. The table below compares Wodgina Lithium Project with other facilities covered by the Safeguard Mechanism in the same classification.