Research

But as shown in a briefing released by Oil Change International today, while Annex 2 (developed) countries continue to debate how to honor their commitment to provide $100 billion each year by 2020 to help developing countries reduce emissions and adapt to climate impacts, these same countries are providing five times more public support for fossil fuel production and consumption than they have so far pledged in climate finance. These fossil fuel subsidies are driving the global growth in greenhouse gas emissions and therefore directly undermining investments to reduce climate impacts.

Today we’re releasing a new report with Earth Track that exposes some $4 billion per year in new fossil fuel subsidies which have gone unaccounted for in previous estimates.

Here in Doha for the UN climate negotiations, we've just released new analysis that shows that fossil fuel subsidies in rich countries are, on average, five times greater than those same countries' pledges towards climate finance.

In our second review of progress in meeting this phase out commitment we conclude that the G20 effort is currently failing.

Our latest report finds that global fossil fuel production and consumption subsidies are at least $775 billion annually and could be $1 trillion or even more. There is an urgent need for transparency in subsidy reporting.

In this graphic, you can see that according to Oil Change International analysis, governments around the world are spending perhaps more than $1 trillion USD combined per year subsidizing the fossil fuel industry.

This briefing finds that the transport of tar sands oil through pipelines in the United States is exempt from payments into the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, which creates a free ride worth over $375 million to tar sands oil producers between 2010 and 2017.

The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, also called the “supercommittee,” must vote by November 23rd on a plan that would reduce the deficit by at least $1.5 trillion. Ending taxpayer subsidies to oil, gas, and coal companies has been suggested by Democratic leaders in Congress and many organizations as something for the chopping block

As the U.S. Congress debates several measures to remove oil industry subsidies, we have published a new factsheet that overviews some of the key issues in the subsidy debate.

This report, prepared by Oil Change International and Earth Track, is the first independent evaluation of the success of the G20 Pledge to phase out fossil fuel subsidies. The report reveals large gaps in the reporting of subsidies and that no new actions have been taken by G20 nations as a result of their commitment in Pittsburgh to phase out fossil fuel subsidies.