New EU subsidies rules too lax to rule out support for damaging energy projects
January 13, 2022
This month, the new State aid Guidelines for climate, environmental protection and energy 2022 enter force. But with a surplus of loose formulations and flexible criteria, only with close public scrutiny can they support sustainable decarbonisation.
Radio silence on gas allegations: European Commission breaks another deadline to respond to Bankwatch’s complaint
October 21, 2021
The European Commission’s Directorate General for Energy is dragging its feet in answering allegations on its role in the selection of priority gas pipelines in the Western Balkans and Caucasus region. The delays threaten to diminish the chances of the Ombudsman’s findings being taken into account while developing new EU energy rules.
The European Parliament at risk of losing sight of climate crisis by getting ready to support new fossil gas projects
September 10, 2021
10th September 2021, Brussels – A majority in the European Parliament, including the Socialist and Democrats (S&D), look set to vote to lock in upwards of 213 million tonnes of carbon from fossil gas, as part of the revision of the EU’s key energy infrastructure law, the TEN-E Regulation.
Romania’s recovery and resilience plan: Investments and reforms conflicting with the decarbonisation process of the energy sector
August 8, 2021
As the European Commission is currently reviewing the Romanian Recovery and Resilience Plan, there is a risk that billions of euros in public money might end up supporting the fossil fuels industry. This briefing provides an analysis of the recovery pl
Civil society wishes on the EBRD’s 30th birthday: shut the fossil fuels party
June 29, 2021
People around the world are already feeling the brunt of the climate crisis on an almost daily basis. Most governments accept we are in the midst of a global climate crisis, including those controlling the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). And yet, Bankwatch’s recent analysis shows that during 2019-2020, the EBRD has awarded the fossil fuels industry more than USD 2 million every day on average. Two million dollars. Every single day.
It is time for EBRD to become the lighthouse for fossil-free development banks
June 24, 2021
On the occasion of its 30th anniversary, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has the opportunity to help avert climate breakdown by putting itself at the heart of the global transition to a carbon-free economy. This joint state
New beginnings at 30: can the EBRD leave behind fossil gas to become a bank fit for our future?
June 16, 2021
This report analyses the EBRD’s energy-related operations across the first two years of the Bank’s new Energy Sector Strategy (ESS) (2019-2020). This initial period of the ESS’s implementation is also compared to the previous ESS implementation period
Zero hour for energy ministers to halt the expansion of Europe’s fossil gas network
June 10, 2021
Calls to curtail the expansion of fossil gas infrastructure are mounting, and on Friday (11 June) EU energy ministers have a chance to ensure Europe’s cross-border energy infrastructure is in line with the leadership role it has taken in the global effort to stem the climate crisis
Joint CSO letter on the TEN-E regulation: Stop the expansion of fossil gas
June 1, 2021
This advocacy letter aims to express civil society organisations’ concerns on the reintroduction of fossil gas in the revised trans-European infrastructure energy (TEN-E) regulation. Bankwatch and 53 other CSOs ask governments to vote against the incl
Billions of EU recovery money to support fossil fuels
May 31, 2021
Several EU states plan to use the EUR 672 billion Recovery and Resilience Facility to expand fossil gas infrastructure using loopholes in the fund’s regulations. These proposals do not comply with objectives of the European Green Deal and recent recommendations from the International Energy Agency to end funding for fossil fuels, warns CEE Bankwatch Network.
