Poland gives coal a voice during UN climate talks
With coal-reliant Poland hosting U.N. climate talks, the fossil fuel industry will get a rare chance to play a more visible role in the global warming debate.
But in a move that has infuriated climate activists, the Polish government will also preside over a high-level coal industry event on the sidelines of the two-week climate conference, which starts Monday.
See http://www.wral.com/poland-gives-coal-a-voice-during-un-climate-talks/13088345/.
Fossil fuel subsidies ‘reckless use of public funds’
The world is spending half a trillion dollars on fossil fuel subsidies every year, according to a new report.
The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) says rich countries are spending seven times more supporting coal, oil and gas than they are on helping poorer nations fight climate change.
Some countries including Egypt, Morocco and Pakistan, have subsidies bigger than the national fiscal deficit.
The new report calls on the G20 to phase out the payments by 2020.
See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24833153.
Institutional investors concerned about ‘unburnable carbon’ fallout
The “carbon bubble” is a concept that has been gaining momentum over the past year. In brief, the theory claims that in order to avoid catastrophic climate change, the world must remain within its “carbon budget”—the volume of CO2 that can be emitted before the Earth’s temperature is pushed over the 2°C benchmark agreed upon by the international community. However, according to the IEA, “no more than one-third of proven reserves of fossil fuels can be consumed prior to 2050 if the world is to achieve the 2°C goal, unless carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is widely deployed.” Following this theory to its logical end, the remaining two-thirds of global fossil fuel reserves are “unburnable”—that is, worthless.
Addressing the market implications of this reality, HSBC published a report that found that a carbon-constrained future could dramatically reduce the market value of major fossil fuel firms—up to 60%, depending on demand repercussions.
See http://www.mining.com/web/institutional-investors-concerned-about-unburnable-carbon-fallout/?utm_source=digest-en-mining-131103&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=digest.
Gore & Blood: Growing ‘Carbon Bubble’ Threatens Earth and the Global Economy
Powerful duo advise individuals and institutions to divest from world’s dirtiest energy sources and put their money towards saving the planet
See https://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/11/01-0.
Norway’s opposition wants $800bn wealth fund banned from coal
Norway’s opposition Labour Party has proposed banning the country’s $800 billion wealth fund from investing in coal producers, a motion that may gain traction as several outside backers of the minority government expressed support.
“We believe that humans are responsible for climate change so we must also see what we can do to reduce emissions,” Labour Party finance spokesman Jonas Gahr Stoere said in a statement.
The fund, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, is a major shareholder in some of the biggest coal miners on the planet, including global giants BHP Billiton, Vale and Anglo American, as well as China’s top producer, China Shenhua .
See http://www.minesandcommunities.org/article.php?a=12484.
House of Lords votes to bring old coal power stations under new regulations
Government defeated by 237 to 193 in vote to amend energy bill that could mean plants are forced to cut down gas emissions.
See http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/nov/04/house-lords-coal-power-stations.