Woodside Petroleum had almost $2.6 billion wiped off its market value after the oil and gas producer was dealt a harsh investor reception to its surprise $3.7 billion purchase of a lower-carbon ammonia project under construction in the United States.

Industry super fund HESTA declared its support for the deal, which CEO Debby Blakey described as “a step in the right direction” to tackle its climate obligations. HESTA was one of the heavyweight funds that led a 58 per cent rejection of Woodside’s climate action plan at its AGM in April.