Campaigns to get banks and big funds to drop their support for fossil fuel enterprises are gathering momentum and are likely to increasingly lead to reputational damage for coal miners, says an Oxford academic.

The campaigns are also likely to lead to increased financing costs for fossil fuel projects, according to Ben Caldecott, director of the Stranded Assets Program at Oxford University.

The 'stigmatisation' of coal companies could leave them with significant problems down the track. Credit:Michele Mossop

Mr Caldecott, who is in Australia for two weeks for a series of lectures and meetings with investors and politicians about his research, said that moves by large funds to exclude coal stocks from their portfolios were spreading remarkably rapidly.

While the sale of fossil fuel stocks typically has little impact, the bigger effect would be through "stigmatisation" of the companies, hampering their operations within society.