U.S. policy to curb aid to foreign coal plants
U.S. president Barack Obama pledged to end U.S. government financing of overseas coal projects, a promise that could end millions of dollars in support for power plants in nations such as Vietnam and India.
As part of a climate action plan released Tuesday, Mr. Obama called for ending U.S. support of foreign coal-fired power plants, unless they are in the poorest nations or have expensive carbon-capture technology.
“This is an important move to stand up and say, ‘Coal is not an acceptable fuel source for the 21st century,’ ” said Justin Guay, a Washington representative for the Sierra Club. “It’s a really strong political signal.”
Until now, Mr. Obama’s push to double exports of U.S. goods and services had conflicted with his environmental goal of reducing the greenhouse gases linked to climate change, as the U.S.-backed Export-Import Bank had expanded financing that, by its
Coal is not an acceptable fuel source for the 21st century
own accounting, led to more and more greenhouse-gas emissions.
The bank has provided hundreds of millions of dollars to back coal plants in India and South Africa, as wells as support for exports of U.S.-mined coal. It’s considering support for two coal plants in Vietnam, according to its website.
The White House announced the policy change as part of an overall climate strategy without mentioning the bank.
“I am committed to working with the bank’s board of directors to implement President Obama’s new initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including his call to end public financing for most new coal-fired power plants overseas,” Ex-Im president Fred Hochberg said.
Ex-Im Bank financing for fossil fuel projects reached a record US$9.6-billion in the 2012 fiscal year, almost double the 2011 total and five times the funding in the final year of the Bush administration, according to Ex-Im data compiled by the environment group Pacific Environment.