Fossil fuels are fast losing their social license. It is becoming increasingly evident that countries’ continued reliance on dirty hydrocarbons escalates the climate crisis, worsens air pollution and enables war.
Long touted as a ‘bridge fuel,’ fossil gas now needs to be recognised by policymakers for the hurdle to the energy transition that it is, and multilateral development banks should urgently end support for gas projects and gas-dependent companies.
The energy transition has to be just and fast, with citizens, municipalities and workers as critical participants in the process. We are working to ensure no more public money is spent on coal, and public finance is used to accelerate this transition.
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IN FOCUS
Fossil gas
Fossil gas is the new coal. Although often labelled ‘natural,’ fossil gas is a major driver of the climate crisis. There is no more room for new investments in fossil gas projects if we are to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis and set a path towards decarbonisation.
District heating
District heating and individual heating are still dominated by fossil fuels and inefficient burning of wood without regard to sustainability criteria, in combination with a low degree of energy efficiency. This has to change, since heating plays a crucial role in the transition into a clean and zero-carbon economy.
Just transition
No one should be left behind when we reconstruct our world into one driven by clean energy. Working on just transition brings all actors who believe in fair regional redevelopment to the same table: unions, industry, public administration, governments, civil society and others sharing this goal.
Modernisation fund
The Modernisation Fund can make a big difference. Redirecting future spending away from polluting energy sources while increasing support for sustainable energy investments would help Europe reduce emissions, slash air pollution, cut energy bills, improve energy security, and end the EU’s dependence on authoritarian regimes. To realise its potential, the Modernisation Fund needs to reform.
But will the EU seize the opportunity or leave its citizens to suffer the consequences?
Documentary: Turning the Tide
Our documentary exposes, for the first time, the extent of financial support four of the world’s leading multilateral development banks (MDBs) – the World Bank, the European Investment Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development – have been providing to the global fossil fuels industry over the past 13 years.
Our analysis shows that since 2008, the oil, coal and gas business has been enjoying no less than EUR 81.5 billion in support from these government-owned financial institutions in the form of loans, grants, credit lines and guarantees.
Coal projects
Ugljevik power plant, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Commissioned in 1985, the 300 MW coal power plant in Ugljevik, Bosnia and Herzegovina, has become famous for emitting more sulphur dioxide than all of Germany’s coal power plants in 2019.
Pljevlja I power plant, Montenegro
The existing 225 MW Pljevlja thermal power plant in the north of Montenegro, near the borders with Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, has been operating since 1982. The plant was originally planned to comprise two units but the second one was never built. The plant, along with the extensive use of coal and wood for heating, has caused unbearably bad air quality in the town.
Kostolac B power plant (B1, B2), Serbia
The Kostolac B power plant, consisting of 2 units of 350 MW each, first started operating in 1987. In 2024, the plant delivered 4359 GWh of electricity to the grid, around 14 per cent of the country’s coal-based generation.
Latest news
True electricity market integration requires environmental compliance
Blog entry | 19 March, 2026The inclusion of electricity in the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) has raised questions about CBAM’s impacts on EU-Western Balkans market integration. But in a new joint civil society position paper, we argue that market integration can only work with a level playing field on environment and climate, and CBAM can contribute to this.
Read moreHow a pioneering Slovak town is modernising its district heating system
Blog entry | 17 March, 2026With fossil fuel phaseouts underway across Europe, many municipalities must urgently find ways to replace their coal- or gas-based district heating systems. Several resources are available from the European Union to help municipalities plan and execute their energy transitions. One town in Slovakia used these tools to modernise its own district heating system.
Read moreChanging the dealer, but keeping the addiction
Press release | 26 February, 2026Civil society reaction to new joint statement between the US and 12 central and eastern European countries
Read moreRelated publications
LNG rush threatens Baltic energy transition: why new LNG infrastructure is a false solution for energy security in the Baltics
Briefing | 14 March, 2023 | Download PDFAs a result of Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Baltic states and Finland, which had relied on Russia for fossil gas imports, now lack sufficient alternative infrastructure to cover regional demand. The main efforts to diversify gas sources and reduce regi
If you’re in a hole, stop digging: a case study on Hungary’s plans to revisit shale gas and on the environmental, social and health impacts of fracking
Briefing | 28 February, 2023 | Download PDFIn 2022, Hungary announced an energy emergency and, to address the crisis, plans to increase domestic fossil gas production. A key part of these plans was to develop an unconventional fossil gas (‘shale gas’) field in Békés county (the Corvinus project
Analysis of alternatives to coal-based district heating for the Bitola region in North Macedonia
Analysis | 21 December, 2022 | Download PDFThe study examines the current heating situation in the Bitola region (covering the municipalities of Bitola, Mogila and Novaci), followed by an analysis of the techno-economic potential for using decentralised heating solutions that are also in line with the country’s environmental protection commitments.
