Tragedy or comedy, what is the Nabucco pipeline really?
Blog entry | 19 January, 2012The announcement of German energy giant RWE to reconsider its plans for the Nabucco pipeline is just the last in a series of confusingly conflicting signals regarding the fate of this gargantuan project.
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Deja vu for Vienna II – a sustainable recovery is needed for the CEE financial sector
Blog entry | 16 January, 2012As pressures mount on western European banks to shore up capital ratios and with 2012 economic growth forecasts for Europe falling close to zero, officials from the European Central Bank, the European Commission, and several international financial institutions (IFIs) are meeting today in Vienna with regulators from CEE countries to discuss a second round of financial support for a fragile CEE banking sector.
Read moreEIB response to Bankwatch study ‘Carbon rising: European Investment Bank energy lending 2007-2010’
Publication | 16 January, 2012The European Investment Bank responded to the study Carbon Rising: European Investment Bank energy lending 2007-2010 in which Bankwatch analysed the energy lending by the EIB since the institution launched its energy policy in 2007. Bankwatch’s rejoinder to the EIB’s letter can also be downloaded as pdf.
Read moreComplaint to EBRD’s Public Complaint Mechanism: Rivne-Kyiv High Voltage Line project
Publication | 10 January, 2012The loan agreement between Ukraine and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for the Rivne-Kyiv High Voltage Line project (connected to the controversial “Second Backbone Corridor”) included significant parts of the project that were not assessed in the obligatory environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) prior to project approval.
Read moreComplaint regarding Sostanj TES6: CCS, public procurement, economic vialbility
Publication | 9 January, 2012The complaint, filed with the European Investment Bank by Environmental Law Service (CZ) and Focus Association for Sustainable Development (SI), outlines controversies in relation to the Sostanj lignite thermal power plant with regards to the following aspects: insubstantial allegation that the project is „carbon capture ready“ and that the assessment submitted by the operator fulfils the criteria set up by the relevant EU Directive, failure to comply with the relevant EU directive for public procurements, questionable economic viability of the project.
Read moreVideo: An EIB holiday
Blog entry | 3 January, 2012Baffled by an EIB loan to a holiday resort in Morocco, our friends from Counter Balance – Challenging the European Investment Bank had a closer look at the kind of development promoted there and came back with this wonderfully illustrative video.
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The new EIB transport policy: not yet ready for sustainability
Blog entry | 12 December, 2011On December 13, the EIB’s Board of Directors is about to approve the institution’s new Transport Policy. This new document constitutes an upgrade of the older 2007 Transport Policy of the bank which tries to incorporate the EU’s progressive agenda on the prevention of climate change (documents such as the “Europe 2020 Strategy” and the “Roadmap for moving to a competitive low-carbon economy in 2050”).
Read moreThe European Investment Bank – powering a sustainable future?
Publication | 8 December, 2011This briefing summarises the main findings of our report Carbon Rising: European Investment Bank energy lending 2007-2010.
Read moreWorld’s largest public lender almost doubles support to fossil fuels in past 4 years
Press release | 8 December, 2011Brussels — The European Investment Bank has increased its fossil fuel lending from 2.8 billion euros to 5 billion euros between 2007 and 2010, according to a study published today by environmental NGO CEE Bankwatch Network.
Read moreCarbon Rising: European Investment Bank energy lending 2007-2010
Publication | 8 December, 2011The study analyses energy lending by the EIB, the world’s largest public bank, since the institution launched its energy policy in 2007. While lending to renewables has increased in the period 2007-2010, support for fossil fuels has also risen, almost doubling from 2.8 billion euros in 2007 to 5 billion in 2010.
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