Europe spends €112 billion per year on fossil fuels despite Phase-out plans

The European Governments and EU are subsidising €112 billion each year for the production and consumption of fossil fuels, claims a new report from the Overseas Development Institute and Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe – violating the Paris Agreement’s phase-out plan 2020. The report, Phase-Out 2020: Monitoring Europe’s fossil fuel subsidies (PH20202) gathered the information from 11 European countries between 2014 – 2016.
September 29, 2017 Read time: 2 mins

The European Governments and EU are subsidising €112 billion each year for the production and consumption of fossil fuels, claims a new report from the Overseas Development Institute and Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe – violating the Paris Agreement’s phase-out plan 2020.

The report, Phase-Out 2020: Monitoring Europe’s fossil fuel subsidies (PH20202) gathered the information from 11 European countries between 2014 – 2016. It revealed the transport sector as the main beneficiary, with more than €49 billion used to support fossil fuels, including tax breaks to reduce the price of diesel.

PH2020 also found that the EU provided an annual average of €4 billion in fossil fuel subsidies through its budget, development and investment banks and funds.

Wendel Trio, director of CAN Europe, said: “The €4bn spent by the EU on fossil fuels, most of which goes to gas infrastructure, locks Europe into fossil fuel dependency for the decades to come. This violates the Paris Agreement’s requirement to make finances work for the climate.”

Other findings include industry and business benefitted just under €15 billion per year and subsidies for fossil fuel exploration in the UK, and France shows €253 million per year in public finance between 2014 – 2016 on finding new resources between 2014 – 2016. 

The report makes a series of recommendations urging European governments to lead the G7 and G20 by their commitment to phasing out fossil fuels by 2020. It also proposes an annual reporting scheme with increased transparency, ensuring energy transitions do not support fossil fuel production and; targeting any remaining subsidies to supporting works and communities to move away from fossil fuels.

Classification & Data Collection

Related Content

  • Call for preservation of Europe’s Horizon 2020 budget
    December 19, 2012
    European associations representing industry, research providers, academia, infrastructure, operators and users in the road, rail, air and waterborne transport sectors combine their voices to call for an appropriate budget share for transport research in the future Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. Transport is the backbone of the European economy, being fundamental to the four freedoms of the European Union, and underpins social interaction and development throughout the Member S
    Read More
  • Bogotá sets tentative timeline for metro tender
    February 6, 2015
    Bogotá mayor Gustavo Petro has announced that a tender for the Colombian capital's Line No. 1 metro project, which has been in the planning for a decade, could be issued by July. However, the final timeline for bidding will depend on whether the city is first able to line up financing for the project, the mayor added, according to local press reports. Building the metro line is expected to cost US$7.5 billion, or about double the previous estimates. In its current form, the metro line will extend some
    Read More
  • A third of Brits willing to pay more to purchase electric cars
    June 5, 2018
    Over a third of the British public would be willing to pay more for a fully electric car than a petrol or diesel vehicle, said Baringa Partners. However, the business consultancy’s latest report also highlighted 35% of respondents think these vehicles are worse value for money. Called Is the UK ready for electric cars?, the document revealed 68% of respondents are willing to pay more for an electric car for its environmental benefits. Meanwhile, nearly half based their decision on the belief that electri
    Read More
  • Dutch survey shows drivers are in favour of road user charging
    January 16, 2012
    'Keep it simple, stupid' is an oft-forgotten axiom but in terms of road user charging it is entirely appropriate. So says the ANWB's Ferry Smith. A couple of decades ago, it might have been largely true that the technology aspects of advanced road infrastructure were the main obstacles to deployment. However, 20 years or more of development have led to a situation where such 'obstacles' are often no more than a political fig-leaf. Area-wide Road User Charging (RUC) is a case in point; speak candidly to syst
    Read More

Highlighted Content