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What's
New! Vol. 9, No. 3 | |
March 2010
- What's New! Indices - 2005
2006
2007
2008 2009
2010
"What's
New!" is a periodic update to keep you informed of the latest on the
ECA Watch website. What's New! features a wide range of materials
related to the reform of Export Credit Agencies (ECAs) including NGO
publications and releases, news articles, commentaries and
announcements about the policies and practices of ECAs and ECA-financed
projects world-wide. If you would like to receive "What's New!" simply
add your e-mail to the ECA-Action list at www.eca-watch.org today!
Questions? Email info-at-eca-watch.org
|
| | 1) |
ECA Watch comments on ECG
climate sector proposals
| | |
2) | US
Ex-Im's Carbon Policy Criticized by Environmental Groups |
| | 3) |
Amnesty International calls for human rights
due diligence by ECAs and their clients |
| | 4) |
Australian
ECA in Papua New Guinea - Why the secrecy? (Podcast summary) |
| | 5) | UK Exporters
call for state-backed trade finance |
| | 6) |
Dutch
ECA insures large loans
provided by shipyard to attract investments |
| | 7) |
Canadian firms dominate mining in Africa - and
have a bad human rights record | | |
8) | Europe-wide protests
against Turkish banks over Ilisu financing |
| | 9) | JBIC
and NEXI publish lists of new projects |
| | 10) |
Ecuador halts talks with China's Export Import
Bank on hydro power financing | | |
— | View Back Issues of What's New |
| | |
|
| 1. |
ECA Watch comments on ECG climate sector
proposals
| (ECA Watch, Paris, 26 March 2010) In response to a request for comments
on a draft proposal for revisions to the Sector Understanding on Export
Credits for Renewable Energy and Water Projects, to be negotiated in
the OECD's Export Credit Working Group in the week of April 19th, 2010,
ECA Watch notes, among other issues, that new incentives for renewable
energy projects cannot be be discussed outside the context in which
OECD ECAs now support significant fossil fuel projects which far
outweight any new carbon footprint reductions from renewable projects,
thus undermining G20 and UNFCC commitments to reduce these footprints.
ECA financing for climate change mitigation should be counted within
the evolving UNFCC process only if fossil fuel financing is counted
against those same countries contributions.
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 | |
| 2. |
US Ex-Im Bank's Carbon Policy Criticized by
Environmental Groups
| | (Environmental
Leader, Fort Collins, 25 March 2010) The Export - Import Bank of the
United States (Ex-Im Bank)
has distributed a detailed implementation plan to stakeholders
for its carbon policy, released
in November last year, but environmental groups are criticizing the
plan that could open the door for financing high-carbon intensity
projects such as coal-fired power plants. |
| | | 3 |
Amnesty International calls for human rights
due diligence by ECAs and their clients |
| (Amnesty International,
London, 27 March 2010) Amnesty International is calling for a human
rights due diligence framework to be built into the operations of ECAs
and their client companies – in particular by integrating human rights
into the impact assessment process currently laid out in the Common
Approaches. |
| |
| 4 |
Australian ECA in Papua New Guinea - Why the
secrecy? (Podcast summary) |
| (2SER-FM, Broadway NSW Australia, 28 February
2010) Human rights watchdog Jubilee Australia has issued a report on Australia’s low-profile export
credit agency,
EFIC, The Export Finance and Insurance corporation. Jubilee Australia
is attempting to shed light on the government body that helps
Australian companies penetrate potentially unstable markets overseas.
On the eve of a $16 billion operation to extract liquefied natural gas from Papua
New Guinea’s Southern Highlands, Joel Robert Keep spoke to Jubilee's
Luke Fletcher. | | |
| 5 |
UK Exporters call for state-backed
trade finance
| (Financial
Times, London, 9 March 2010) Exports are being held back
by lack of an adequate state-backed trade finance scheme, leaving many
companies unable to take advantage of favourable exchange rates,
according to the British Chambers of Commerce. UK companies are
still experiencing severe difficulties securing export finance from the
private sector, according to the business group in a report published
March 9. A recent OECD/WTO report notes that a G-20
goal of making available $250 billion in trade
finance has been achieved, mostly through national export-credit
agencies. | | |
| 6. |
Dutch
ECA insures large loans
provided by shipyard to attract investments |
| (Dredging Today, Rotterdam, 17 March 2010) Loans provided by IHC Merwede will
be insured by the Dutch Government so the shipbuilder can persuade
customers who would like to invest but due to economic headwinds are
reluctant to open their purses. The loan is made possible by IHC
Merwede's banker Rabobank, ING Bank, Commerzbank and Royal Bank of
Scotland. The export credit is provided by the public agency Atradius
Dutch State Business.
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| |
| 7. |
Canadian firms dominate mining in Africa -
and have a bad human rights record |
|
(The East African, Nairobi, 1 March 2010) China's great rival
in African mining is Canada. Only South Africa
has more mining assets and investments according to the Canadian
Ministry of Natural Resources. Canadian companies were active in 35
African countries and Africa represented 17 % of the total
$85.9 billion in cumulative Canadian mining assets. This year, the
total value of Canadian mining assets in Africa is
expected to surpass $21 billion compared to just $233 million in
1989. The Canadian government has actively supported this expansion
and according to the 2007 annual report of Export Development Canada,
the government’s export credit agency has supported projects
totalling $22 billion worth of exports and investments in Canadian
companies in the extractive sector. A significant number of companies
are accused of environmental and human rights abuses, often in
developing countries where the government is weak or corrupt. According
to the Toronto Star, the word “Canada” is so reviled
that travelling Canadians mask their citizenship by wearing American
flags on their caps and backpacks. | | |
| 8. |
Europe-wide protests
against Turkish banks over Ilisu financing |
| (BankTrack,
Nijmegen, 15 March 2010) Following last year's withdrawal of official
export credit agency support for the Ilisu dam, environmental NGOs are
now demanding withdrawal of Turkish bank loan commitments for the Ilisu
dam project. | | | |
| 9.
| JBIC
and NEXI publish lists of new projects |
| JBIC and NEXI have published their lists of
new projects for the period 26 January 2010 to 30 March 2010.
Information on NEXI's new environmental guidlines (July 2009)
(PDF) and on objection procedures can also be
found on their web site. |
| |
| 10. | Ecuador halts talks with China's Export
Import Bank on hydro power financing |
|
(Latin America Herald Tribune, Quito, 30 March 2010) Ecuador has
suspended negotiations with Chinese ECA China Export Import
Bank for financing of an almost US$2 billion hydro power
plant which would be the country's largest. Ecuador is not going to
allow "the government to be mistreated nor for conditions to be
demanded that have never been demanded in the history of the republic"
said Finance Minister Maria Elsa Viteri.
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