G7’s Green Recovery: Promises Kept? The G7 Countries Have Spent More on Fossil Fuels than Clean Energy

June 03, 2021

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by Ashira Morris (Our Daily Planet) The G7 countries have spent more on fossil fuels than clean energy since last March, a new study led by the non-profit Tearfund shows. The seven countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States) from January 2020 through March of 2021 spent a combined $189 billion to support oil, coal, and gas versus $147 billion on clean energy projects. The fossil fuel money was mostly given without any conditions about emissions or pollution, and the biggest beneficiaries were bailouts to transportation companies like British Airways, Renault, and Honda.

Why This Matters: The economic upheaval of the pandemic and its accompanying stimulus could have been a chance to pump money into the country’s net-zero goals. Instead, it appears that the members propped up the very industries that are increasing carbon in the atmosphere. These seven countries are among the most polluting and the wealthiest on earth.

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The report offered a shortlist of suggestions for the seven countries going forward:

Getting rid of no-strings-attached financial support for fossil fuels — future funds should have “green strings” tied to spur clean energy
Increase the proportion of Covid relief spending from 22% to 40%
Use financial power and influence to move toward a carbon-free future by doubling their financial commitment to lower-income countries, stopping financing for fossil fuel projects overseas, and persuading development banks to align with climate goals.

To Go Deeper: Check out the full report by Tearfund and its partners here. READ MORE

Cleaning up their act? G7 fossil fuel investments in a time of green recovery 2021 (Tearfund)

To LNG or not to LNG--WHERE DOES LNG FIT IN: (Politico's Morning Energy)

Five takeaways from REN21’s Renewables 2021 Global Status Report (REN21)

G7 leaders urged to support SAF (Biofuels International)

Ford Foundation to divest millions from fossil fuels (Associated Press)

Oil, Coal, & Gas Got $5.9 Trillion In Subsidies In 2020 — IMF Report (Clean Technica)

Fossil fuel production must be cut in half to control global warming: study (The Hill)

Behind the Energy Crisis: Fossil Fuel Investment Drops, and Renewables Aren’t Ready: The transition to cleaner energy sources isn’t far enough along to meet a surge in demand (Wall Street Journal)

Report: G20 Governments Have Bankrolled at Least $188 Billion in Fossil Fuels Since 2018 (North American Clean Energy)

EU climate and infrastructure agency eyes end of fossil fuel projects (EurActiv)

Excerpt from Poltico's Morning Energy: WHERE DOES LNG FIT IN: U.S. liquefied natural gas shipments have soared in the last five years, and American producers are projected to top the market by 2025. Gas has also played a major role in cutting carbon emissions in the U.S., and LNG could offer developing countries a more climate friendly option than coal as they build modern energy systems.

But with growing calls for abandoning all fossil fuels to stave off the worst effects of climate change, the Biden administration is in a tough bind on what role LNG plays in the transition. Completely abandoning the fuel can be a major blow to U.S. influence and overseas partners reliant on LNG investments, but the administration is eagerly fighting to green the economy by mid-century.

The administration says it can use fossil fuels to ferry global energy toward a cleaner future while still emphatically shooting for net-zero emissions. “Traditional fossil energy is going to remain important, even as we work to reduce carbon emissions,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said last month.

But investors are still casting a wary eye on how LNG plays into the administration's climate finance plans before pouring money into new projects. READ MORE

Excerpt from REN21: 1. While the use of renewable energy has increased, this is overshadowed by fossil fuels remaining a dominant source of energy for the world.

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2. Recovery packages pour money into the brown economy despite the advantages of renewables.

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Excerpt from Biofuels International: It was proposed that the G7 should commit to at least a 10% use of SAF by 2030, supported by price incentives.

Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye told the meeting: “We all agree that stopping climate change is the biggest challenge facing our planet.

“The G7 has already shown leadership by agreeing a global minimum corporate tax, and if we can tap into that collective spirit to collectively commit to a mandate for at least 10% use of sustainable aviation fuel by 2030 and the right price incentives to use it, we will ensure our children can have the benefits of flying without the carbon cost.” READ MORE