US banks' nuanced stance on funding coal projects with emissions abatement
Many U.S. banks continue to finance coal plants that adopt emissions abatement technologies, despite a global trend towards divesting from coal.
Meg Duff reports for Capital & Main.
In short:
- The U.S. has joined the Powering Past Coal Alliance, but with a caveat for plants implementing emissions abatement technologies.
- Critics argue that carbon capture and storage (CCS), a favored abatement method, may not effectively reduce emissions and could extend the lifespan of coal plants.
- Despite the increasing financial risk, four major U.S. banks have policies allowing funding for coal plants employing CCS, contrasting with global divestment trends.
Key quote:
"The big risk is that carbon capture and storage might be used as an excuse to prolong the lives of coal plants that should be closed very soon now."
— Yann Louvel, policy analyst for Reclaim Finance
Why this matters:
The reliance on unproven carbon capture technology by major banks poses a challenge to achieving climate goals, potentially undermining efforts to reduce dependency on coal. In spite of abundant damning evidence attesting to the negative planetary health impacts of every aspect of coal production; coal mining, coal processing and coal burning continues to attract financing.
