New Report Reveals How Governments Could Support up to 15 New Coal Plants Despite International Restrictions
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Friends of the Earth U.S. today released a report revealing that Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) export credit agencies (ECAs) could finance up to 15 coal plants. The report comes after almost two years of international coal financing restrictions from the OECD went into effect. If completed, they would have a total capacity of over 14,000 megawatts and could emit up to 84.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually — equivalent to more than 18 million cars driven for a year. Japanese and Korean ECAs are responsible for the majority of coal financing. Most recently, the Japanese and Korean ECAs agreed to support the Nghi Son 2 coal plant in Vietnam, in direct violation of the OECD coal restrictions.
From 2013 to 2015, the world’s largest ECAs provided an annual average of USD 38 billion in support of fossil fuels. Eighty-eight percent of ECA support for energy projects went toward fossil fuels, compared to only seven percent for clean energy projects.
Kate DeAngelis, senior international policy analyst at Friends of the Earth U.S., issued the following statement:
Despite international coal plant financing restrictions, export credit agencies continue to provide a vital lifeline to an otherwise dying coal industry. The Japanese and Korean export credit agencies remain two of the worst offenders. This is happening at the same time that science is warning that climate change is happening even faster and with more dire consequences than previously thought. These governments speak about the need to take action to address climate change, while their own export credit agencies are fueling the climate crisis. This is beyond hypocritical. It is irresponsible, disastrous for the future of people and the planet. These ECAs must reverse course and put an end to coal and all other fossil fuel financing.
Expert contact: Kate DeAngelis, (202) 222-0747, [email protected]
Communications contact: Patrick Davis, (202) 222-0744, [email protected]