World’s largest multilateral bank ends fossil fuels financing
November 14, 2019
Brussels, Prague — Bankwatch, Counter Balance and a growing number of civil society groups have long been calling on the European Investment Bank (EIB), the EU’s house bank, to recognise the urgency of stemming the climate crisis and stop handing out public money to fossil fuel projects. Today, November 14, the bank’s Board of Directors adopted a new Energy Lending Policy that ends financing for most fossil fuels projects.
NGOs reaction to preparatory works kicking off at Tuzla 7 coal unit in Bosnia-Herzegovina: “This plant is not ready for construction”
October 31, 2019
Preparatory works for the construction of a new 450 MW coal unit Tuzla 7 are set to start on Friday, even as numerous controversies accompany the project, including an infringement case under the Energy Community Treaty.
EU bank drops Belgrade incinerator, citing impact on recycling: EBRD and other banks press on
October 28, 2019
Prague, Belgrade – The European Investment Bank (EIB) has refrained from financing the planned Vinča municipal waste incinerator in Belgrade, Serbia, according to a letter sent to the Ne Davimo Beograd initiative that campaigns against the project.
Expansion of largest coal mine in Romania stopped, following Bankwatch court case
October 23, 2019
Bucharest – A Bucharest court blocked the expansion of Rosia, the largest coal mine in Romania located in Gorj county, following a legal challenge to the mine’s environmental permit lodged by Bankwatch Romania.
Just Transition funding needs to support real transitions
October 17, 2019
According to draft conclusions of the European Council, EU leaders meeting today and tomorrow look forward to a proposal from the European Commission to establish a Just Transition Fund.
Major gas projects in Romania enabled by regulatory acrobatics – report
October 17, 2019
At a time when public calls for tackling the causes of the climate crisis are growing, Romania’s gas industry has been expanding, courtesy of the Parliament and international financial institutions.
Decision on a fossil fuels ban at the EIB postponed once more
October 15, 2019
Today the European Investment Bank (EIB) decided to again, postpone the long overdue adoption of a new Energy Lending Policy. This delay is mostly due to tensions around the EIB’s proposal to phase out lending to fossil fuels. Several shareholders, including Germany, and the European Commission are pushing back on what would be a precedent in the fight against climate change.
Can European Parliament make ICT fair?
October 1, 2019
On the morning of the 1 October, the Make ICT Fair consortium held a breakfast event at the European Parliament in Brussels attended by around thirty participants. The event was hosted by Austrian MEP Monika Vana of the Greens/EFA and Swedish MEP Abir Al-Sahlani of Renew Europe in the Members Salon of the Parliament.
Too soon to call the “Juncker Plan” a success – new report
October 1, 2019
The EU’s next major investment scheme, succeeding the so-called Juncker Plan, is likely to be central to the ‘European Green Deal’ touted by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. But a report released today by watchdog NGOs Counter Balance and CEE Bankwatch Network finds the Juncker Plan has so far shown weaknesses in its transparency, sustainability, geographical concentration and additionality, and calls for improvements for its post-2020 phase.
New report: hydropower subsidies wreak environmental havoc and line influential pockets in the Western Balkans
September 25, 2019
Disproportionate public subsidies for small hydropower in the Western Balkans have resulted in widespread environmental damage and have benefited wealthy business people close to or part of the region’s governments, with little benefit for electricity generation, finds a new study released today by CEE Bankwatch Network.
