Asked by: Baroness Blackstone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 25 February (HL13294), how the "very limited exceptions" by which some fossil fuel projects will be permitted are defined.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Guidance on how the government will implement its policy on support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas was published in March and is available on the gov.uk website (see link below). The guidance covers: what is exempt from the policy, guidance on how the policy will apply to specific areas and areas not covered by the policy. Publication of the guidance follows a consultation process that ran from 12 December 2020 to 8 February 2021.
How the government will implement its policy on support for the fossil fuel energy sector
Asked by: Baroness Blackstone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park on 25 February (HL13295), whether they are currently considering any fossil fuel financing projects through (1) UK Export Finance, or (2) Overseas Development Assistance, within the scope of the "very limited exceptions".
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The government published detailed guidance accompanying the implementation of the new policy on support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas on 31 March. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-the-government-will-implement-its-policy-on-support-for-the-fossil-fuel-energy-sector-overseas. We will consider any requests for project financing against the published guidance.
It is not possible to publish all planned, potential transactions, investments, export credit guarantees, loans, and loan guarantees, for reasons of commercial sensitivity. Details of confirmed financial support will be available in FCDO's annual Statistics on International Development report on Official Development Assistance spend, and in UK Export Finance's annual report.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that other G7 countries are ending support for fossil fuel projects abroad.
Answered by James Duddridge
Through our G7 Presidency we are pursuing credible, tangible and lasting multilateral climate action, further enabling an ambitious and comprehensive negotiated outcome at COP26. We are committed to supporting the transition to a low carbon economy through increased investment and cooperation in green technologies and we continue to strive for consensus on these issues ahead of the G7 Climate & Environment Ministerial (20-21 May) and the G7 Leaders' Summit (11-13 June). This includes a dedicated review of support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas by G7 members, with a focus on the most polluting fossil fuels.
Asked by: Baroness Blackstone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the total value of overseas aid invested in fossil fuels via (1) the CDC Group, and (2) the Private Infrastructure Development Group, including investments made through financial intermediaries, for the (a) 2015/16, (b) 2016/17, (c) 2017/18, (d) 2018/19, and (e) 2019/20, tax years.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
CDC has published its complete portfolio of energy investments as held at 31 December 2019 on its website, which includes the start date of each investment and the total amount committed.
The value of Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) commitments to energy projects (disaggregated by renewables and non-renewables) is published in the 2019 PIDG Annual Review available on the PIDG website. Project level data on all PIDG investment commitments are also available online via its Results Monitoring Database and its annual reports.
Due to the disproportionate cost of compiling the requested data, it is not possible to provide an estimate of the total value of support provided to overseas fossil fuels projects or companies via the CDC Group and PIDG.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Prime Minister's press release of 12 December 2020, PM announces the UK will end support for fossil fuel sector overseas, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of implementing that policy with immediate effect.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The related consultation launched by my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 12 December 2020, ‘Aligning UK international support for the clean energy transition’, set out four possible timing options for implementation of the above referenced policy shift – March 2021, June 2021, October 2021 and Later than 2021. The consultation closed on 8 February 2021, the Government is considering the evidence received, and will respond in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Blackstone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the total value of (1) investments, (2) export credit guarantees, (3) loans, and (4) loan guarantees, granted (a) under Official Development Assistance, and (b) by UK Export Finance, to overseas fossil fuels projects or companies which are currently active.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
Data on the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) support to CDC and Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) provide the current best estimate of the total value of investments, loans, and loan guarantees, to overseas fossil fuels projects or companies.
CDC has published its complete portfolio of energy investments as held at 31 December 2019 on its website, which includes the start date of each investment and the total amount committed. The value of PIDG commitments to energy projects (disaggregated by renewables and non-renewables) is published in the 2019 PIDG Annual Review available on the PIDG website.Project level data on all PIDG investment commitments are also available online via its Results Monitoring Database and its annual reports.
Due to the disproportionate cost of compiling the requested data, it is not possible to provide an estimate of the total value of support provided to overseas fossil fuels projects or companies by UK Export Finance investments.
Asked by: Baroness Sheehan (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether (1) the CDC Group, and (2) the Private Infrastructure Development Group, have to follow any policies set by central Government in relation to (a) investments, (b) loans, and (c) loan guarantees, linked to fossil fuels.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
CDC Group Plc and Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) each have their own policy on investing in projects linked to fossil fuels. These policies are publicly available and closely aligned to the UK Government's own policy on ODA funded fossil fuel investments overseas, announced at the Climate Ambition Summit on 12 December 2020.
Asked by: Baroness Sheehan (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the total carbon emissions associated with fossil fuel projects funded through (1) Official Development Assistance, and (2) UK Export Finance, in (a) 2018, (b) 2019, and (c) 2020.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
UK Export Finance (UKEF) defines fossil fuels projects as those related to the extraction, production, transportation and refining of crude oil, natural gas or coal and fossil-fuel fired power stations.
Until 31 March 2020 UKEF’s collected projected annual operational CO2-equivalent (CO2e) Scope 1 and Scope 2* emissions of projects only where they fell under the scope of the OECD Council Recommendation on Common Approaches for Officially Supported Export Credits and Environmental and Social Due Diligence (OECD Common Approaches) or the Equator Principles and where they were expected to exceed 25 000 tonnes CO2e annually. The table below is compiled on that basis and uses the latest emissions data known to UKEF for the total carbon emissions associated with fossil fuel projects funded through UKEF in 2018, 2019 and 2020:
(*Scope 1 emissions are direct emissions from owned or controlled sources. Scope 2 emissions are indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy.)
Projects currently in operations phase (operational carbon emissions)
Financial Year UKEF funding agreed (signed) | UKEF support effective (funding provided) | Estimated carbon emissions in tonnes of CO2e per annum |
2018 | Yes | 18,030,000 |
2020 | No | 26,804,725 |
Estimated emissions for projects supported but not yet in operation (still in construction phase, hence no actual operational carbon emissions to date)
Financial Year UKEF funding agreed (signed) | UKEF support effective (funding provided) | Estimated carbon emissions in tonnes of CO2e per annum during future operations |
2018 | Yes | 15,257,820 |
2019 | Yes | 8,178,670 |
2020 | No | 3,600,000 |
With regards to the period from 1 April 2020, emissions information has not yet been collated within UKEF, but UKEF will make climate-related financial disclosures in its
accounts, in line with the Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures’ (TCFD’s) recommendations, as soon as practicable following the close of the 2020/21 financial year. For 2020-21 this disclosure will include the type of emissions data described above and in addition will include information on UKEF's governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets regarding climate change financial risks.
We do not hold data for estimated carbon emissions associated with past fossil fuel projects funded through Official Development Assistance (ODA).
Asked by: Baroness Blackstone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the total value of planned (1) investments, (2) export credit guarantees, (3) loans, and (4) loan guarantees, in overseas fossil fuel projects by way of (a) Overseas Development Assistance, and (2) UK Export Finance, which have been committed but have not yet been finalised.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The Prime Minister announced at the Climate Ambition Summit on 12 December that the Government will no longer provide any new direct financial or promotional support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas, with very limited exemptions.
The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs has set out seven core priorities for the UK's official development assistance (ODA) budget in the overarching pursuit of poverty reduction, with climate and biodiversity forming one of these core priorities. No decisions have yet been made by FCDO Ministers on individual country or sectoral budget allocations for 2021/22. In addition, it is not possible to publish all planned, potential transactions, investments, export credit guarantees, loans, and loan guarantees, for reasons of commercial sensitivity.
Asked by: Baroness Blackstone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend any policy on banning overseas fossil fuel investment to investments made by the CDC Group, including those by third party financial institutions.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Prime Minister announced at the Climate Ambition Summit on 12 December 2020 that the Government will no longer provide any new direct financial or promotional support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas, with very limited exemptions. The policies of CDC are well aligned to the delivery of the Government's policy to end fossil fuel investment overseas.