New Slovene legal requirements for Šoštanj lignite power plant (TEŠ 6) regarding CCS
October 17, 2012
On September 8, 2012 new legislation entered into force in Slovenia that requires TEŠ to prepare an assessment of the CCS readiness for its new Unit 6. Pursuant to this legislation, proper assessment of the CCS readiness for the Unit 6 has not taken place yet. As a result, TEŠ has not met the legal requirements regarding the CCS assessment and therefore it is not possible to determine its CCS readiness under the Slovene law. Letter available as pdf: Letter to the European Investment Bank >>> Letter to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development >>>
Initial public offering of ZE PAK SA exposes investors to major risks
October 17, 2012
The briefing details the risks that make shares of an Zespół Elektrowni Pątnów Adamów Konin SA (ZE PAK), the second largest producer of lignite in Poland, unattractive and high-risk prospect. Furthermore, investing in ZE PAK through its Initial Public Offering is inconsistent with any investor’s efforts to take action on climate change.
Comments on draft European Energy Community Strategy – an unsustainable energy future
October 15, 2012
Neighbouring countries of the EU from the Western Balkans to Ukraine are planning unsustainable energy futures relying on coal and nuclear. The energy strategy of the European Energy Community indicates continued reliance on coal and nuclear energy which could happen with EU support and financing.
Bankwatch Mail 53
October 10, 2012
This issue is devoted primarily to the countdown to EU Budget ‘D-day’, and the negotiations now reaching a troublesome climax on how approximately 1 trillion euros of EU money is to be spent across the continent in the 2014-20 budgetary period. We also round up some recent developments at the EBRD and EIB. And if you think that US presidential candidate Mitt Romney has a monopoly on private equity and tax havens, think again.
Money, and the EU’s climate agenda, to burn: EBRD mining strategy on a carbon collision course
October 9, 2012
With the EBRD due to sign off on its new mining strategy in November this year, 22 MEPs have pointed out in an open letter to European commissioners that given the state of the policy draft the bank risks contradicting the EU Resource Efficiency Roadmap and responsible mining principles. At risk of being compromised too, Bankwatch believes, are the EU’s 2020 strategy and EU commitments on climate change and biodiversity protection.
Trust us, we’re euphoric – Private equity and a tax haven part of the EBRD’s first post-Arab Spring swoop
October 8, 2012
For its first loan to ‘Arab Spring’ countries the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has chosen vehicles and partners whose ability to deliver developmental value is highly uncertain.
How the facts got in the way of a good EBRD Roma headline
October 8, 2012
This summer’s ‘silly season’ featured a a blog post on the EBRD website replete with the claim that the bank has helped turn Serbia into a “role model for social inclusion of Roma”. This claim immediately rang hollow in light of the ongoing plethora of abuses of Roma rights in Serbia.
The Oil Road – How a done deal continues to unravel
October 8, 2012
The Oil Road by James Marriot and Mika Minio–Paluello is a remarkable recounting of their journey along the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline from Azerbaijan to the City of London. It is a narrative peppered with a wealth of cultural, social and economic history and kaleidoscopic insight from the Caspian region and beyond.
Egypt’s turmoil is a distraction from the west’s economic agenda
October 8, 2012
The storming of the US embassy in Cairo has diverted attention once again from the real issues facing Egypt. It couldn’t have come at a better time for those who want to convince the Egyptian people to accept an International Monetary Fund loan and other western IFI interventions, and thus extend former president Hosni Mubarak’s liberalisation of the economy.
Hoyer and out: New EIB president muddles through European parliament hearing
October 8, 2012
With the European Investment Bank having recently postponed the annual face-to-face dialogue with NGOs that the bank’s former president Philippe Maystadt initiated in autumn 2011, it was good to see new EIB president Werner Hoyer being put on the spot in September by MEPs during a hearing at the Europeam parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee.
