G7 countries to stop funding fossil fuel development overseas

Alok Sharma Usa Britain Japan Germany Italy France Canada Ukraine city Berlin Provident

30.05.2022 - 13:43

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theguardian.com:

The world’s biggest economies are to stop funding any overseas fossil fuel development from the end of this year, in a move likely to choke off some of the investment in “carbon bombs” that are imperilling efforts to meet the world’s climate targets.

The agreement could shift about $33bn (£26bn) a year from fossil fuels to clean energy sources, according to analysts’ estimates.

The energy and environment ministers from all G7 countries agreed at a meeting in Berlin on Friday to end taxpayer funding for oil, gas and coal projects overseas. The member countries are Japan – which held firm against such a pledge before last year’s Cop26 climate summit – the UK, the US, Canada, Italy, France and this year’s host country, Germany.

Alok Sharma, the British president of Cop26, said the commitment showed, in the context of the Ukraine war and high prices of fossil fuels, that the transition to clean energy was more important than ever. “We are united in the view that climate and environment security are absolutely synonymous with energy and national security and I cannot overstate that. Solving the global energy crisis and the chronic climate crisis requires the same solution – it’s about reducing our dependence on fossil fuels as part of a managed transition.”

Laurie van der Burg, a campaign co-manager at the green group Oil Change International, said: “The G7 committing to end public finance for fossil fuels and shift it to clean [energy] is a massive win. This is a timely reconfirmation [amid the Ukraine war] that the most viable pathway to energy security is prioritising public finance for clean energy. These promises should now urgently be turned into action.”

Projects that are already under way may escape the new commitment.