Missing sustainability: The EBRD’s controversial energy lending in Ukraine (2006-2013)
Publication | 20 December, 2013While the EBRD’s founding document require it to “promote in the full range of its activities environmentally sound and sustainable development” more than half of the bank’s energy investments in Ukraine for the period 2006-2013 hardly served the purpose of sustainable development promotion. In this period the EBRD has supported nuclear energy production and new output capacities for nuclear power plants, export-oriented infrastructure, as well as controversial initiatives in the renewable energy sector.
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Litmus test for EBRD rhetoric on democracy with Egyptian oil project
Blog entry | 19 December, 2013On December 18 the EBRD board of directors approved a loan of USD 50 million to finance a project aimed at the expansion of oil operations and reducing gas flaring in Egypt. Yet the tenuous political situation in the country continues to raise concerns about the bank’s ability to make a positive contribution towards the democratic process, and whether it should be investing there at all.
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Sounding out the EBRD’s energy strategy: little ambition besides scrapping coal
Blog entry | 13 December, 2013At a closer look the EBRD’s new energy strategy, complimented for the restrictions it places on coal lending, reveals a shocking lack of operational knowledge to implement the ambitions outlined in its executive summary.
Read morePreventing tax loss through offshore financial centres: The EBRD must lead by example
Publication | 12 December, 2013In recent years, the EBRD has increasingly recognised the important role that states play in the transition to a well-functioning market economy that is based on strong institutions and the inclusion of all social groups into the economy. For this, states need resources, and taxation is one of the main means to ensure them.
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EBRD joins other financial institutions in restricting coal lending
Press release | 10 December, 2013The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) approved today during a vote of its Board of Directors a new Energy Strategy. The document is meant to give guidance on how to strategically use the bank’s resources over the next years to promote energy security and affordability and avoid dangerous climate change.
Read moreEBRD soft on coal sector corruption, new analysis shows
Press release | 9 December, 2013The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has been approving financing for coal projects over which corruption allegations loom, and in some cases even while official corruption investigations were underway, according to an analysis published by CEE Bankwatch Network today.
Read moreCoal and corruption – the case of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Publication | 9 December, 2013The EBRD is about to approve a new energy strategy, yet it is unclear to what extent it will follow other public lenders in halting coal financing. In this paper we step away from the discussions on climate issues to take a look at another reason why the EBRD should be wary of investing in coal projects: corruption.
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Ukrainian nuclear sector in defiance and in financial trouble
Blog entry | 4 December, 2013On November 28, the state nuclear regulator of Ukraine (SNRIU) allowed the continued operation of unit 1 of the South Ukrainian nuclear power plant (SUNPP-1) until December 2, 2023 – 10 years beyond its technically designed lifetime. The decision not only constitutes a breach of national regulation, but also disregards an unresolved case of non-compliance with the UN Espoo Convention. All this while Energoatom is in an increasingly tight financial situation.
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UPDATED: Six months and counting… EBRD silent on investigations into its own operations
Blog entry | 3 December, 2013Is the EBRD deliberately dragging its feet on publishing investigation reports on large hydropower plants in Georgia, Macedonia and Croatia?
Read moreLocal impacts of Danosha pig farms, Ukraine
Publication | 27 November, 2013The EBRD is considering a loan to the Ukrainian agribusiness corporation Danosha whose pig farms in the Ivano-Frankvisk region have triggered numerous complains by locals.
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