Research

Market distorting subsidies to fossil fuels contribute to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and impede the transition to sustainable, low-carbon development. In 2009, G-20 countries committed to phase out “inefficient” fossil fuel subsidies in an effort to specifically address climate change and boost investment in clean energy sources. It has been five years since the G-20 commitment, yet very little progress has been made to end these subsidies.

There is a clear logic that can be applied to the global challenge of addressing climate change: when you are in a hole, stop digging. If we are serious about tackling the global climate crisis, we need to stop exploring, expanding, and ultimately exploiting fossil fuels. This is especially true for high cost, high carbon, high risk frontier projects such as offshore Arctic oil. 

An examination of crude-by-rail data shows that the U.S. east coast has become one of the busiest regional destinations for hazardous crude-by-rail traffic. Oil Change International used publicly available Department of Energy (EIA) data as well as subscription data from Genscape to examine the growth of crude-by-rail to one of the most densely populated areas of the United States.

Today we’re releasing a new briefing, entitled “Lift the Ban, Cook the Climate: Why Eliminating the Crude Export Ban Fails the Climate Test,” detailing why Congress and the President should stand up to current efforts by the oil industry to eliminate the ban on crude oil exports.

Combining all known public sources, and augmenting them with subscription industry databases, this report makes comprehensive information on public financing for coal easily accessible for the first time.

The Canadian tar sands is among the most carbon-intensive, highest-cost sources of oil in the world. Even prior to the precipitous drop in global oil prices late last year, three major projects were cancelled in the sector with companies unable to chart a profitable path forward.

Despite repeated calls for urgent action on climate change, the World Bank Group increased funding for fossil fuels in its last fiscal year. The World Bank’s increase in fossil fuel finance is especially disappointing as 2014 was the first full fiscal year following the World Bank’s commitment to limit coal financing due to climate concerns.

Public support for fossil fuel exploration in rich countries is nearly triple the amount pledged to the Green Climate Fund.

G20 countries are estimated to be spending $88 billion every year subsidising exploration for fossil fuels. This new report documents, for the first time, the scale and structure of fossil fuel exploration subsidies in the G20 countries.

A new report by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and Oil Change International quantifies for the first time the financial and carbon impact of public opposition to pipelines and other expanded investment in tar sands production.