subsidies

Czech environmental and law groups have proposed a law amendment to revive the disadvantaged renewable energy sector in their country. Karel Polanecky from Bankwatch member group Hnuti Duha explains their initiative.

In the wake of last month’s Volkswagen (VW) emissions scandal, a Politico story, based on a Bankwatch analysis, revealed that the car manufacturer enjoyed generous public financial support from the European Investment Bank (EIB). But the full picture is even more disturbing.

A new report by the Belgrade-based NGO CRTA shows that the Serbian government is supporting the Kostolac coal power plant and mines with loan guarantees and potentially VAT exemptions. Propping up the already dominant coal sector, however, will likely further increase Serbia’s vulnerability to extreme weather events. Increasing Serbia's energy efficiency and renewables generation would be the wiser choice.

A new law that will redraw the Czech Republic’s approach to renewable energy is suspected to bring the development of the Czech renewables sector to a standstill and instead provide a boost for the country's fossil fuel sector.

In case you missed it, the tectonic plates just shifted in the world of international financial institution (IFI) energy lending.

Joining a global day of action against fossil fuel subsidies, Bankwatchers in Ukraine highlighted how much still needs to be done in their country.

The case of two Enel investments in Romania illustrates how subsidies for coal power can be ambiguous, but provide very concrete disincentives for investments in renewable energy.

Poland is on course to place further large roadblocks in the way of the European Commission's Roadmap 2050 towards a low-carbon economy unless certain demands being insisted on by Warsaw are met. These include the granting of free allowances for all 16 power plants that Poland has asked to be supported under the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme.