Welcome to ECA Watch

Export credit agences provide government-backed loans, guarantees and insurance to corporations working internationally in some of the most volatile, controversial and damaging industries on the planet.

Shrouded in mystery, ECAs provide financial backing for risky projects that might never otherwise get off the ground. They are a major source of national debt in developing countries.

ECA Watch is a network of NGOs from around the world. We come together to campaign for ECA reform - better transparency, accountability, and respect for environmental standards and human rights.

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What's New April 2022

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

See all "What's New!" updates since 2005 here.

  • UN Secretary General: Some governments & business leaders say one thing but do another. Simply put they're lying.
  • Greenwashing won't cut it: Canada risks disaster by barely mentioning financial sector in climate plan
  • Indigenous Australians Derail Controversial Barossa Gas Project by Suing South Korean ECA
  • Oil Change International launches database to expose the institutions using our money to fund fossils
  • UKEF hands billions to projects linked to labour abuse and climate damage
  • UKEF faces further legal action over Mozambique LNG project
  • LNG Exports Seen Benefiting From EXIM Financing
  • The 900-Mile EACOP East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline Is a Bad Deal for My Country — and the World
  • Global Trade Review Editorial: Encouraging yet disheartening
  • U.S. EXIM Bank formalizes Russia pullout; approves Sri Lanka, Albania, Iraq deals
  • Sinosure scales up financial support for green industries
  • Swedish ECA studying new import guarantee fund
  • Aeroflot negotiating purchase of 8 ECA financed Airbus aircraft

UN Secretary General: Some governments & business leaders say one thing but do another. Simply put they're lying.

(Brisbane Times, Brisbane, 11 April 2022) The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Sixth Assessment Report, with its direct language and whole chapter on finance, should be a wake-up call to those in the business community who are avoiding taking genuine action on climate change. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres didn’t mince his words when he introduced the report to the world, bluntly stating that investing in “new fossil fuel infrastructure is moral and economic madness.”  The report calls out commercial banks and export credit agencies for the role they are still playing in financing fossil fuel investments. He notes that "Some government and business leaders are saying one thing – but doing another. Simply put, they are lying."

https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/environment/climate-change/simply-put-they-are-...


Greenwashing won't cut it: Canada risks disaster by barely mentioning financial sector in climate plan

(National Observer, Vancouver, 6 April 2022) Canada’s recently published emissions reduction plan provides a roadmap for how Ottawa plans to hit its 2030 climate targets, but critics say until the financial sector is aligned with climate goals, the government's plans are “derelict.” Environmental Defence’s climate finance manager Julie Segal says Canada appears excited about the benefits of sustainable finance but doesn’t appreciate the risks from continued fossil fuel investments. First, there's the systemic risk from climate change and how the financial sector and financial regulators approach that, and then there's the piece about how the financial sector is contributing to climate change through investments,” she said. “And Canada is being derelict on those accounts.” The 271-page emissions reduction plan contains [only] 4 pages dedicated to “sustainable finance” that outline at a high level a few of the federal government’s initiatives. However, Segal says the brief attention to financial issues in the plan, when compared to the detail offered for other sectors, shows Ottawa isn’t grasping the importance of the file. “Part of the reason they're not getting it is because the Sustainable Finance Action Council — all of the work on sustainable finance — is very much led by industry,” she said. “The federal government hasn't thought about finance and climate properly. They just haven't really understood what's going on here,” said Adam Scott, director of Shift Action for Pension Wealth and Planet Health. Greenwashing won’t cut it because real emissions reductions are needed to protect the economy at large from ever-worsening natural disasters and the economic impacts of climate change. Page 5 of a recent Oil Change International report shows that Canada leads the world in its public finance support for fossil fuel investments.

https://www.nationalobserver.com/2022/04/06/news/government-risks-disaster-barel...


Indigenous Australians Derail Controversial Barossa Gas Project by Suing South Korean ECA

(VICE, Brooklyn, 6 April 2022) The South Korean government has shelved plans to pour $700 million into a massive $4.7 billion gas project in Australia’s Timor Sea far north offshore after Tiwi Island Indigenous leaders from the region took them to court, according to government meeting notes seen by VICE. The Export-Import Bank of Korea pulled the handbrake on part of a mammoth $US700 million investment into the controversial Barossa gas project in Australia’s Northern Territory last month. “Not only is the Barossa gas project more polluting than other existing gas fields, but it also faces business uncertainty with its incomplete carbon capture and storage scheme, and plummeting long-term liquified natural gas demand,” said Hye-Young, South Korean National Assembly representative. ABC Australia reports that South Korea's K-SURE and Japan's JBIC have approved their financing, so the project's financing hinges on KEXIM. Larrakia and Tiwi Islander traditional owners, along with an international coalition of anti-gas groups, are targeting plans for a $4.7 billion Barossa gas development, to be built and operated by Santos, in waters about 300 kilometres north of Darwin. Conversation Canada has noted that this Tiwi Islands offshore gas fight shows public banks are under real pressure over fossil fuel funding. They note that Public financial institutions are under renewed pressure to change lending practices after the world’s leading climate scientists strongly warned against any new fossil fuel infrastructure. In our region, public banks in China, Japan, and South Korea now face unprecedented scrutiny for their role in financing the climate crisis. While export credit agencies are not the only funders of oil, gas and coal infrastructure, and not the largest either, they have been instrumental in developing many of the world’s most carbon intensive sectors. How? By locking in fossil fuel energy systems, leveraging private finance by reducing risk premiums, and shaping international standards which influence private bank policies. In short, they have played a key role in enabling fossil fuel expansion. For decades, these state supported agencies have gone under the radar. No longer. Scrutiny is increasing of their work borrowing from national treasuries or public capital markets to finance export-oriented fossil fuel projects.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/akv94k/indigenous-australians-have-derailed-a-co...


Oil Change International launches database to expose the institutions using our money to fund fossils

(Oil Change, Washington, 28 April 2022) Public finance institutions shape our future energy systems. They are uniquely positioned to catalyze a just, transformative, and rapid transition to clean energy and a livable future — if we can hold them accountable to their public-interest mandates. But the decade-plus of data Oil Change International has collected for the newly launched Public Finance for Energy Database (energyfinance.org) shows most influential international public finance institutions are failing to take the very first step: stop funding fossil fuels. The headline finding of our database is that G20 countries’ trade, export credit and development finance institutions and the major multilateral development banks (MDBs) provided at least $63 billion each year to coal, oil, and gas projects between 2018 and 2020. That is 2.5 more than the support for clean energy by the same institutions over the same period. In addition to this critique, the report notes that there is momentum growing to end public finance for fossil fuels and shift this to support a just energy transition, with 39 countries and institutions committing to do this by the end of 2022 under the Glasgow Statement at COP26.

https://priceofoil.org/2022/04/28/launched-public-finance-for-energy-database/


UKEF hands billions to projects linked to labour abuse and climate damage

(The Guardian, London, 31 March 2022) UK Export Finance used £5.24bn of taxpayer money to fund overseas energy and infrastructure ventures despite its own review raising concerns over labour abuses and environmental damage. Since 2019, UKEF has allocated £5.24bn of taxpayer money to projects with the potential to cause “significant adverse environmental and/or social impacts” in countries across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, according to calculations by the Guardian based on disclosures made by UKEF. Oil refineries, power stations, and a large-scale liquified natural gas (LGN) project are among the high-risk “Category A projects”, to receive funding recently. UKEF undertook environmental and human rights reviews of the projects ahead of granting the funding. Despite recommendations to mitigate labour abuses, six migrant workers employed on Middle Eastern projects backed by UKEF have revealed low pay, safety hazards, excessive working hours, and the denial of freedom of movement as persistent issues. Daniel Willis, policy and campaigns manager at Global Justice Now said that “Human rights considerations are an afterthought, and due diligence seems to be approached as if it is just a box to tick.” A review of an oil refinery upgrade programme in Kuwait, obtained by a freedom of information request, shows that UKEF knew of worker issues before it provided a $179m (£135m) support package in 2019. Employees and contractors were commonly working more than the maximum overtime hours allowed by legislation, and 87% of workers surveyed had not received an employment contract, according to the UKEF’s review. About 90% of workers at Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) had also been charged illicit recruitment fees to secure their jobs. Before awarding it $500m in 2019, a UKEF review flagged the Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) oil refinery expansion project as having “forced and child labour and worker health and safety as potential project risks”.

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/mar/31/britain-hands-billion...


UKEF faces further legal action over Mozambique LNG project

(Global Trade Review, London, 20 April 2022) Friends of the Earth says it will continue its fight against UKEF's decision to provide US$1.15bn of support to a natural gas project in Mozambique, after a split judgement from two UK High Court judges. In a judgement handed down last month, Justice Stuart-Smith dismissed Friends of the Earth’s claim, ruling that UKEF’s assessment of the climate change impacts of the project was lawful. But the second judge hearing the case, Justice Thornton, found that UKEF had failed to take climate impacts properly into consideration and ministers who approved the financing package did not have access to enough information to make a decision. The project under development by Total includes two offshore gas fields and a liquefaction plant with capacity of some 13 million tonnes per year. UKEF is among eight other export credit agencies and 19 commercial banks financing the project, in what Total says is the largest project finance deal ever struck in Africa. When fully operational it is expected to significantly lift Mozambique’s contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, however its proponents say that it may lead to an overall shrinking of emissions because some buyers will use the exported gas to switch from fuel sources such as coal and oil. During the course of the judicial review, arguments focused on a climate change impact report produced by UKEF which was provided to ministers who had input into the funding decision. The report relied heavily on an assessment by energy consultants Wood Mackenzie and Wood Mackenzie acknowledged that the report had severe limitations due to the difficulty of knowing where and how the exported gas would be used. An internal UKEF email described the report as “very light and [it] makes high level assumptions”. Total suspended construction of the Mozambique project and evacuated workers after insurgent attacks in early 2021, delaying the expected start of production to 2025. The company’s chief executive Patrick Pouyanne told Reuters in February that the company plans to restart construction sometime this year.

https://www.gtreview.com/news/europe/ukef-faces-further-legal-action-over-mozamb...


LNG Exports Seen Benefiting From EXIM Financing

(Bloomberg, Washington, 13 April 2022) The U.S. Export-Import Bank approved a plan Thursday that could yield a flood of financing for U.S. energy ventures, including wind and solar projects, battery manufacturing and terminals to sell LNG overseas. The bank’s board voted 3-0 on a formal policy shift encouraged by the Biden administration that would extend support to domestic manufacturing and infrastructure projects that facilitate exports. The agency plans to prioritize financing for green projects, from renewable power ventures to clean energy manufacturing. The initiative would apply to non-energy ventures too, including the manufacture of semiconductors, biotech and biomedical gear. Environmentalists and natural gas advocates say the initiative could also bolster a host of LNG export terminals proposed from the U.S. Gulf Coast to Alaska, especially given the Biden administration’s efforts to supplant Russian energy in Europe with U.S. supplies. Shipments of U.S. natural gas have surged over the past few years. While advocacy groups for the U.S. LNG sector quickly welcomed the plan, saying it could help projects overcome funding challenges and support thousands of jobs, environmentalists expressed concern that new LNG financing could take money away from renewable energy. As the U.S. attempts to bring down the soaring price of energy, financing from a New Deal–era agency could be used to ramp up domestic gas production. It is planning those controversial investments with almost no opportunity for public review. Now, under pressure from LNG interests, Exim may double down on its investment in fracked gas through a domestic financing program President Biden has created to strengthen supply chains.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-13/lng-projects-may-get-funding-...


The 900-Mile EACOP East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline Is a Bad Deal for My Country — and the World

(New York Times, Kampala, 8 April 2022) Vanessa Nakate, Ugandan climate justice activist, notes that this week, the panel of climate experts convened by the UN delivered a clear message: To stand a chance of curbing dangerous climate change, we can’t afford to build more fossil fuel infrastructure. We must also rapidly phase out the fossil fuels we’re using. In moments like this, the media rarely focuses on African countries like mine, Uganda. When it does, it covers the impacts — the devastation we are already experiencing and the catastrophes that loom. They are right to: Mozambique has been battered in recent years by cyclones intensified by climate change. Drought in Kenya linked to climate change has left millions hungry. In Uganda, we are now more frequently hit by extreme flash floods that destroy lives and livelihoods. Africa isn’t only a victim of the climate crisis, but also a place where infrastructure decisions made in the coming years will shape how it unfolds. TotalEnergies, a French energy company, this year announced a $10 billion investment decision, which involves a nearly 900-mile oil pipeline from Kabaale, Uganda, to a peninsula near Tanga, Tanzania. From there, the oil would be exported to the international market. Despite local opposition, TotalEnergies and a partner, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, have pushed ahead. The project might have a difficult time securing additional financing, as many banks have already ruled out the project. The multinational insurance company Munich Re has also vowed not to insure it, at least in part because of the harm it would do to the climate. An estimated 14,000 households will lose land, according to Oxfam International, with thousands of people set to be economically or physically displaced. There are reports that compensation payments offered to some communities are completely insufficient. In other news, Ugandan NGOs have written to German and Italian ECAs asking them to not finance EACOP, noting that if constructed the pipeline will be the longest electrically heated crude oil pipeline in the world, will transport 216,000 barrels of crude oil per day at peak production, will displace over 86,000 people from 5,172 hectares of land in Uganda and Tanzania, affect nearly 2,000 sq.km of protected areas, a quarter of which are habitats for endangered species, threaten the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Lakes Albert and Victoria fishers in Uganda and the DRC and result in the production of over 34.3 million metric tonnes of carbon per year, roughly 7 times Ugana's annual emissions when the oil is burnt.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/08/opinion/environment/east-africa-oil-pipeline....


Global Trade Review Editorial: Encouraging yet disheartening

(Global Trade Review, London, 11 April 2022) Momentum continues to build around environmental, social and governance efforts in trade and trade finance. Every week, we report on encouraging new developments, including a recent decision by the European Council that gives export credit agencies (ECAs) in the EU until the end of 2023 to set deadlines for ending support for fossil fuels; the formation of the Climate Working Group, a new initiative convened by the Berne Union bringing together ECAs and other insurers and financiers to accelerate climate action; as well as the much-anticipated launch of a pilot of a new ESG scoring tool for measuring country, supply chain and company activity against EU and UN sustainability goals. Other developments have been less heartening. The annual Banking on Climate Chaos report, a comprehensive global analysis on fossil fuel financing released as this publication goes to press, documents that in the six years since the adoption of the Paris Agreement, the world’s 60 largest private banks poured US$4.6 trillion [yes trillion] into fossil fuels. As much as US$742bn of support was provided in 2021 alone. The report, co-authored by NGOs including BankTrack, Sierra Club and Oil Change International, includes a timeline that lays out how banks that joined the Net-Zero Banking Alliance last year simultaneously financed “some of the most egregious oil and gas expansion companies”. In this publication, we take a closer look at these and other issues impacting on ESG and trade.

https://www.gtreview.com/magazine/esg-trade-issue-2022/from-the-editor-17/


U.S. EXIM Bank formalizes Russia pullout; approves Sri Lanka, Albania, Iraq deals

(Reuters, Washington, 31 March 2022) The U.S. EXIM's board of directors on Thursday voted to formalize the bank's withdrawal from any further business in Russia and approved financing and to guarantee deals worth up to $381 million for Iraq, Sri Lanka and Albania. The board also voted to notify Congress of a proposed renewal of a $450 million credit guarantee to Citibank that backs a $500 million facility to allow 365 suppliers of aircraft maker Boeing to receive accelerated receivables payments related to export sales of Boeing aircraft. The formal closing of Russian business follows an announcement last week by EXIM and export credit agencies in Britain and Canada to withdraw all support from Russia and Belarus in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. EXIM previously had an administrative hold prohibiting Russian business since Moscow's annexation of Crimea in 2014. EXIM still has $410 million in prior credit exposure to Russia, primarily for aviation sector loan guarantees that were granted before Crimea's annexation. Meanwhile, it’s not clear how many of the 500 or so foreign-owed planes stuck in Russia are potentially eligible for the exception, or which owners will be able to apply. Most of the aircraft are on operating leases vs fixed term rental contracts.

https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/us-exim-bank-formalizes-russia-pullout-...


Sinosure scales up financial support for green industries

(Xinhua, Beijing, 17 April 2022) China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure) says it has stepped up support for the country's green industries by providing more export credit insurance. Since the start of 2021, the company has insured over 150 green projects, with the sum insured reaching around 7.7 billion U.S. dollars.  Sinosure has also strengthened its financial support to green projects under the Belt and Road Initiative and helped domestic companies explore overseas green and low-carbon markets. Take the photovoltaic industry as an example. Sinosure has helped facilitate the export of photovoltaic products worth over 130 billion U.S. dollars from 286 companies since 2005. Looking to the future, Sinosure will continue to explore green finance innovation, promote the integration of green finance and green industries, increase support for green industries and green projects, and give better play to the role of export credit insurance, the company said.

https://www.bignewsnetwork.com/news/272488901/sinosure-scales-up-financial-suppo...


Swedish ECA studying new import guarantee fund

(Regeringen, Stockholm, 12 April 2022) Google translation. The Swedish Riksdag has proposed a budget amendment for 2022 that would authorize the government to issue guarantees of up to SEK 3 billion (US$305 million) for the purpose of insuring critical raw material imports for industry, to be administered by the Swedish Export Credit Agency (EKN). The new government guarantee is intended to support the green transition threatened by increased demand for critical raw materials and increases in raw material prices which have risen markedly since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The raw material guarantee would fall under EKN's sustainability policy and hence EKN must take into account its guaranteeing of the environment, extraction of fossil fuels, human rights and working conditions, combating corruption and tax evasion and promoting sustainable lending to poor countries. As the credit guarantee is linked to the import of raw materials, unlike EKN's other range of export credit guarantees, a new regulation is required and a Proposal for a new regulation went out for consultation on 25 March.

https://www.regeringen.se/pressmeddelanden/2022/04/regeringen-foreslar-en-ravaru...


Aeroflot negotiating purchase of 8 ECA financed Airbus aircraft

(AssumeTech, Iceland, 21 April 2022) Aeroflot is considering the purchase of 8 chartered Airbus SE aircraft after the European Union provided a mechanism for lenders to dispose of some seized aircraft in Russia after the invasion of Ukraine, TASS reported. The planes operate under so-called finance leases, which the European Union created a penalty waiver this month by allowing payments from agreements signed before February 26. Financial leases refer in to new Airbus and Boeing aircraft, with export credit agencies guaranteeing approximately 85% of the amount lent to an airline by a banking association. Most of the approximately 500 foreign-owned aircraft blocked in Russia operate under operating leases in which airlines lease planes for a specified period and can return them to the owner after the contract has expired. Russia passed a law banning foreign-owned planes from leaving without state permission after the Ukrainian invasion imposed penalties on lessors for canceling contracts and trying to return their planes.

https://asumetech.com/russian-airlines-is-negotiating-for-the-purchase-of-8-airb...


What's New March 2022

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!

Export credits face Russia sanctions AND the Paris Agreement

(ECA Watch, Ottawa, 29 March 2022) As governments struggle to find fossil fuel supplies to offset dependence on imports from Russia, and transnational oil firms reap huge profits from higher oil prices and look for more through new projects and pipelines, and families around the world face not only higher gas prices to fill the family car or local buses but also higher food costs driven by dependence on fossil fuel dependent agriculture and manufacturing chains, Export Credit Agencies confront the big contradictions between pressures to not finance global warming and Western political expectations of livestyles and infrastructures dependent on fossil fuels. This month's What's New looks at ECA cuts to fossil fuel projects and ECA support for Russian projects and the war in Ukraine. Requests for ECA investments in Mozambique and East African pipelines face African demands instead for renewable energy projects and rejection of African complicity in looming global warming. For years ECA Watch has documented the billions of ECA investments in fossil fuels. One investment industry source estimates that the cumulative total volume of sustainable export finance deals in the five years to the end of 2021 was [only] $109 billion across 353 deals. They noted that about 20% of export finance deals ($28.6 Billion) through 2021 were classified as sustainable, i.e. 80%, or $143 billion, weren't. And on top of that, the European Securities and Marketing Authority (ESMA) has warned that the definition of sustainable export finance (for example measurement of CO2 emissions) can be subject to greenwashing. In fact one commercial research company in February removed 1,200 so called environment, social and governance (ESG) funds, with a combined $1.4 trillion in assets, from its European sustainable investment lists, after tightening its criteria on ESG tagging, as it believed those funds were not delivering on their stated ESG [Environmental, Social and (Corporate) Governance] goals. The slack monitoring of the "gentlemans' agreement" of the OECD "common approaches" definitions and environmental standards for official ECAs is well known, with the result that pressures are mounting for the Councel of the European Union to act to enforce ECA compliance with the Paris Agreement, since the OECD "disciplines have not been sufficiently modernized" and the OECD Arrangement is "not keeping up with the pace demanded by both changing economic and climate environments".




ECAs slam the door on Russia

(Global Trade Review, London, 9 March 2022) Export credit agencies and trade credit insurers have hurriedly axed coverage for Russia and Belarus as the deepening conflict and western sanctions interrupt trade and major projects. At least 10 ECAs have stopped or limited coverage for the two countries since late February, when Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an invasion of Ukraine. Many ECAs have also suspended coverage of Ukraine. ECA exposures to Russia range from the relatively modest A$3mn of Export Finance Australia to the substantial €1.7bn on the books of Austria’s OeKB. Other exposures disclosed to GTR or in annual reports include €1bn for Finnvera, Finland’s ECA; US$453mn for Sweden’s EKN; US$428mn for the US Export-Import Bank (US Exim); and €170mn for Poland’s Kuke. ECAs which may have significant exposures but did not respond to questions or publicly disclose exposures include those in France, Italy, Japan and Spain. UK Export Finance (UKEF) has £49.9mn in remaining exposure to buyers in Russia. UKEF declined to respond on the record but GTR understands the agency’s total exposure relating to Russia is just over £100mn.

https://www.gtreview.com/news/global/export-credit-agencies-and-trade-credit-ins...


European Council conclusions on official export credits

(European Council, Brussels, 15 March 2022) The Council's conclusion underlines that officially supported export credits are key levers in order to achieve priority policy goals for the European Union and its Member States. Such goals include the building of a strong industrial Europe, while ensuring the transition to low greenhouse gas emissions. Officially supported export credits are essential for Europe's global industrial competitiveness as they support European companies in competing for contracts and projects overseas, thereby providing jobs and growth, including for Small and Medium Enterprises, across EU Member States. Officially supported export credits originated by EU Member States are highly regulated, notably by the OECD Arrangement on Officially Supported Export Credits and EU Regulation No. 1233/201. They note that "these disciplines have not been sufficiently modernized, given the evolution of global value chains and the international competition from non-OECD countries". They further note "that even though there has been increased progress in the negotiations on the OECD Arrangement, they are still not keeping up with the pace demanded by both changing economic and climate environments". While acknowledging "the need to adapt export credit policies accordingly, in an effort to limit the global average temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels", the Council conclusions focus on the goal of a "global level playing field and the modernisation of the OECD Arrangement" with a view to ensuring that "officially supported export credits are essential for Europe's global industrial competitiveness as they support European companies in competing for contracts and projects overseas". ECA Watch notes that this EU position on ending public support for fossil fuels fails to do exactly that. See our statement issued on March 15th.

https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2022/03/15/the-council-a...


Berne Union Launches New Climate Working Group (CWG)

(Berne Union, London, 17 March 2022) The group leverages the Berne Union network to connect innovation in export credit with global problem-solving around climate challenges and sustainable development. The ultimate objective of the Climate Working Group is to accelerate climate action in the export credit, trade finance and political risk insurance industries by fostering innovation and promoting alignment around low-carbon transition. The CWG is chaired by EDC's Leah Gilbert Morris, and administrated by the Berne Union Secretariat. Institutions leading the work of the CWG include: AGENCE FRANÇAISE DE DÉVELOPPEMENT (AFD); AFRICAN TRADE INSURANCE AGENCY (ATI); AXA XL; BPIFRANCE; DZ BANK; EDC CANADA; EKN SWEDEN; INVESTEC; MIGA (WORLD BANK); UK EXPORT FINANCE; US DEVELOPMENT FINANCE CORPORATION. [It will be interesting to see whether this is just another greenwashing initiative. Some 1200 supposedly ESG compliant funds with a combined $1.4 trillion in assets were recently dropped by commercial research company Morningstar from its European sustainable investment ratings, which presumably follow EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulations (SFDR). EDC's role as Chair of the CWG would seem compromised by EDC's portfolio, which provided more public finance for fossil fuels than any G20 country other than China between 2016 and 2018, with EDC providing on average $13.8 billion in support to oil and gas companies each year.]

https://www.berneunion.org/Articles/Details/661/Berne-Union-Launches-New-Climate...


EDC targets growing demand for ESG financing

(Globe & Mail, Toronto, 28 March 2022) Canada’s export credit agency is looking to capitalize on the growing trend for sustainable investing, launching a set of new financial tools aimed at supporting socially oriented businesses and helping large greenhouse gas emitters reduce their carbon footprint. Export Development Canada has issued green bonds since 2014, using the proceeds to invest in public transportation and renewable energy projects. [We have pointed out in other articles in this month's What's New that EDC provided more public finance for fossil fuels than any G20 country other than China, on average $13.8 billion in support to oil and gas companies each year between 2016 and 2018. So they have a long way to go to offset their fossil fuel vs sustainability imbalance.]

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-edc-targets-growing-demand-for-...


EDC backed loan to primarily Russian-owned Buhler Industries

(CBC, Winnipeg, 9 March 2022) In December 2020 Export Development Canada — a federal Crown credit corporation — signed a guarantee to back half of a $14-million loan to Winnipeg's 97% Russian owned Buhler Industries to support the company's ongoing operations. The manufacturer of farming equipment, including Versatile tractors, has been under scrutiny since Konstantin Babkin, who resigned as a Buhler director on March 2, made at least two public statements in support of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Babkin leads the Action Party, a Russian political party that has supported Russian President Vladimir Putin. On Feb. 21, Babkin tweeted out the party's support of Putin's decision "to recognize the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics" in Ukraine. Buhler Industries has repeatedly denounced Russia's attack on Ukraine. Babkin's resignation did not impact his ownership stake in Buhler Industries, which is 97% owned by Combine Factory Rostselmash. That company is a subsidiary of Novoe Sodrugestvo CJSC, a Russian conglomerate co-owned by Babkin, current Buhler director Dmitry Udras and Buhler CEO Yury Ryazanov. EDC has not purrsued business related to Russian contracts or Russian borrowers since 2014, when Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula, Buhler Industries says pulling out of the loan could have a huge impact on Canadian workers, farm equipment dealers and farmers who count on the company for spare parts.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/export-development-buhler-loan-1.6373466


Indian Exporters Find Themselves Caught In Russia/Ukraine Crossfire

(Bloomberg Quint, New Delhi, 1 March 2022) Even before the harshest of sanctions ⁠hit, trouble had started to build for those in India doing business with Russia. On Friday evening, two days after Russia began attacking sites in Ukraine, Rakesh Shah, director at Nipha Exports in Kolkata, received an email from the Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India stating that export credit guarantees for exports to Russia would now be approved only on a case-by-case basis and not as freely as it was before. This was done to account for the rising risk in the region, the government said in a release while clarifying that the cover has not been completely withdrawn. On Tuesday, Reuters reported that India's largest bank State Bank of India has stopped transactions with Russian entities under sanctions to avoid being in breach of them. Nipha Exports has €1,00,000 worth of material to be shipped to Russia and unfulfilled orders worth €3,00,000 up to May this year. With impediments to trade rising, how quickly it will be able to resume shipments and get payments is anybody’s guess.

https://www.bloombergquint.com/business/russia-ukraine-crisis-indian-exporters-f...


Korea Wins US Export Ban Exemption, Shores Up Exporters to Russia

(Asia Financial, London & Hong Kong, 4 March 2022) South Korea said on Friday that it had won an exemption from expanded US export restrictions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, Seoul’s trade ministry said on Friday. The exemption means Korean companies won’t have to secure licences from Washington for exports using US technology before they can be shipped to Russia. The US rule, part of Washington’s sanctions on Moscow, was feared to affect major South Korean exporters, as they make heavy use of US technology and software. The move followed meetings between Yeo Han-koo, South Korea’s trade minister, and senior US officials in Washington on Thursday. Seoul unveiled a list of measures to help companies with export records to Russia or Ukraine in the previous year. They include export credit guarantees and short-term export insurance.

https://www.asiafinancial.com/korea-wins-us-ban-exemption-shores-up-exports-to-r...


Pressure on Japan's energy ties in Russia ratchets up with Shell's Sakhalin exit

(S&P Global, Tokyo, 1 March 2022) Pressure is mounting for Japanese companies to review their energy business connections with Russia in the wake of Shell's withdrawal from the Sakhalin 2 project, which accounts for close to 9% of Japan's LNG imports, industry sources said. Shell's Feb. 28 announcement that it was withdrawing from its partnerships with Russian energy giant Gazprom, including the Sakhalin 2 crude oil and LNG project in the Russian Far East, in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Jogmec provides an equity financing and loan guarantee to Japan Arctic LNG, a subsidiary of Mitsui, which has a 10% stake in the Arctic LNG 2 project. NEXI provides export credit insurance and export credit guarantees for Japanese companies' energy businesses including LNG in Russia.

https://www.spglobal.com/commodity-insights/en/market-insights/latest-news/oil/0...


ECIC Growing Its Footprint In Ethiopia and the DRC

(Forbes Africa, Johannesburg, 4 March 2022) The Export Credit Insurance Corporation (ECIC) provides political and commercial risk insurance cover to South African exporters of goods and services and to cross border investors. Its strategic focus is on emerging markets in Africa and outside the continent that are considered too risky for conventional insurers. Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are amongst the largest economies in Africa and are therefore key markets for South African exporters and the ECIC.  The ongoing civil war, which started in November 2019, created a highly uncertain environment in Ethiopia. The recent release of opposition political party officials from prison by the central government is a significant step towards a resolution of the civil war. Investments into Ethiopia for which ECIC was involved include a US$12,5 million in a cement plant by South Africa’s Pretoria Portland Cement (PPC) and a USD121,5m by Vodacom South Africa in 2021. ECIC provided political risk insurance cover for both investments. The DRC is endowed with exceptional mineral resources including cobalt and copper, significant arable land, and huge hydropower potential. This continues to attract significant investment into the country making it the third largest recipient of foreign direct investment in Sub Saharan Africa. The ECIC supported projects in various sectors of DRC including mining, transport, food, and construction sectors. South Africa can supply capital, skills, machinery, and consumer goods to help the country reach its development potential.

https://www.forbesafrica.com/brand-voice/2022/03/04/the-african-insurance-compan...


SACE freezes loan for Russian Arctic LNG 2 plant

(Reuters, Rome, 1 March 2022) Russia's invasion of Ukraine has prompted Italy to put on hold its share of financing for the $21 billion Arctic LNG 2 project led by privately-owned Russian gas producer Novatek (NVTK.MM), two sources close to the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. Italian state lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) and the Russian arm of Italy's biggest bank Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) had agreed in recent weeks to help finance Novatek's project. The loan was set to be guaranteed by SACE, Italy's export credit agency, which has already insured nearly 5 billion euros worth of projects and investments relating to Russia. SACE also notes that it is temporarily suspending the evaluation and acceptance of new risks for export credit activities in Russia and in Belarus.

https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/exclusive-italy-freezes-loan-russian-arct...


Judges split over UKEF funding of Mozambique gas project

(Drill or Drop, London, 15 March 2022) Two judges have disagreed in what could be a landmark case over whether the UK government acted lawfully in approving $1.15bn financing for a liquified natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique. The case at the High Court, brought by Friends of the Earth, examined the decision to fund the scheme through the export credit agency, UK Export Finance (UKEF), approved by the Treasury and the Department for International Trade. The judges’ split decision means the judicial review has not yet succeeded and a court order is awaited with the final result. Friends of the Earth said today it was likely to appeal if the judicial review was refused. The case, which tested compliance with the Paris Agreement, centred on the failure to assess the project’s total climate impact by taking into account emissions produced from the end-use of the gas, known as scope 3. This is thought to be the first time a judge has argued that to be consistent with the Paris Agreement all finance flows must be shown to be in line with the international ambition to limit temperature rise to 1.5C.

https://drillordrop.com/2022/03/15/high-court-judges-split-over-government-decis...


Korean ECAs sued to stop deep-sea oil pipeline

(BBC, London, 23 March 2022) Tiwi Islands and Larrakia Traditional Owners in Australia’s Northern Territory and youth activists in South Korea have taken the South Korean government to court to stop it from financing Santos and SK E&S’ offshore deep sea Barossa gas project. The legal challenge could prevent the South Korean Government from lending some $AU964 million (US$722m) to the $4.7 billion Barossa gas project via its export credit agencies, the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) and the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-SURE), putting the financial viability of the entire project at risk. The Traditional Owners argue they have not been consulted about the project - which threatens their sea country and way of life - and therefore have not been given the opportunity to give their free, prior and informed consent for it to proceed. Plans for the gas project include a 300km-long pipeline to be built through their sea country, an area under their legal jurisdiction. Traditional Owners fear impacts to cultural sites, turtles and other marine life that are central to their culture and the local ecotourism industry. Energy giant Santos is pushing ahead with development for the major new gas field off the coast of Darwin, in what it says is the biggest investment in Australia's oil and gas industry in almost a decade.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-60828912


What's New February 2022

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

See all "What's New!" updates since 2005 here.

  • Paris Agreement alignment of EDC (NOT!)
  • Germany suspends Russian export credit guarantees
  • Indian exporters hold back shipments to CIS
  • Ukraine: TFX Trade Risk Briefing - What might be the impact of sanctions?
  • EXIM's first Black leader faces challenges on China, climate, equity
  • Total’s East African crude oil pipeline ‘struggling’ to find financiers
  • AfCFTA Secretariat, Afreximbank Seal Deal on $10bn Fund to Boost African Economies
  • AfreximBank Trade Centre Harare project to start soon
  • Sustainability in export finance – the push for change
  • Italy clears hurdle to buy SACE in $4.8 bln deal
  • Building a bank for entrepreneurs is crucial, says CEO of Bpifrance
  • Canada Bangladesh FTA negotiations with EDC role?
  • Africa's Fossil-fuel Investment Trap

Paris Agreement alignment of EDC (NOT!)

(Perspectives Climate Group, Freiburg, 15 February 2022) Perspectives Climate Group has launched a new 41 page report which finds that despite commitments made at and after COP26, Export Development Canada's activities are not aligned with the Paris Agreement's 1.5 degree objective. In total, the  exposure  of  EDC’s  portfolio to carbon-intensive activities stood at 26% – equalling a total exposure of about USD$16 billion – by the end of 2020.  Support for ‘cleantech’ activities, the Canadian label for climate- or sustainability-related activities, was small compared to fossil fuel-related support standing at about USD 2.33 billion per year. Total portfolio exposure is not reported for ‘cleantech’ and a definition of ‘cleantech’ based on a positive list of activities does not exist. Currently, negative emission technologies like carbon capture and storage (CCS) are eligible for the cleantech definition. While there are reasons to justify CCS in some cases, we deem it as misleading to classify them as ‘cleantech’ because they can lead to prolonging fossil fuel infrastructure lifetime and to spurring fossil fuel demand. EDC's  official  exclusion  policy  for  fossil  fuels  only  applies  to  thermal  coal, not mettalurgical coal, another high-carbon intensive and important Canadian export good. Limiting temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels requires massively re-directing financial flows away from carbon-intensive activities and towards low-carbon activities. However, despite commitments made under Article 2.1(c) of the Paris Agreement ... many countries still provide significant financial support to fossil fuel value chains, among others, through their export credit agencies (ECAs). Canada's National Observer notes that EDC needs to clean up its act on climate.

https://www.perspectives.cc/public/fileadmin/user_upload/ECA_Canada.pdf


Germany suspends Russian export credit guarantees

(Wall Street Journal, Berlin, 25 February 2022) Berlin has stopped the approval of export credit and investment guarantees for Russia, the Economy Ministry said. With the so-called Hermes cover credit export guarantees, the German government protects companies against the insolvency of foreign customers. Germany issued such guarantees for trade with Russia to the tune of 1.49 billion euros, equivalent to $1.67 billion, in 2021, the ministry said. The instrument has been in use since 1949. ECA Watch Italian member ReCommon has asked SACE to clarify its position given its EUR 4.3 billion exposure in Russia. Numberous other international sanctions have been imposed on Russa.

https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/russia-ukraine-latest-news/card/germany-suspend...


Indian exporters hold back shipments to CIS

(Deccan Chronicle, Secunderabad, 28 February 2022) The Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) [of India] has decided to withdraw coverage for shipments to Russia with effect from February 25. ECGC in a communication had said: "based on the near-term commercial outlook, it has been decided to modify the country risk classification of Russia under the short-term and medium-and-long term with effect from February 25." Indian exporters to Russia and CIS countries face uncertainty over goods worth $500 million due to the withdrawal of credit guarantee cover on items bound for the region, sanctions on Russian banks and feared disruptions at ports in the Baltic region.

https://www.deccanchronicle.com/business/market/280222/exporters-hold-back-shipm...


Ukraine: TFX Trade Risk Briefing - What might be the impact of sanctions?

(TFX News, London, 25 February 2022) In a 20 minute TFX video, Rebecca Harding, CEO of Coriolis Technologies discusses the practical impact of sanctions on commodity trade and oil and gas prices,  the shift surrounding Nord Stream 2, second the involvement of international payments mechanisms, specifically SWIFT in the fast-moving situation and third the potentials for rebalancing trade power relationships – specifically around Russia’s relationship with China and a pivot from East West to East East – and its limitations.

https://www.txfnews.com//News/Article/7339/Ukraine-Trade-Risk-Briefing-There-is-...


EXIM's first Black leader faces challenges on China, climate, equity

(Sherrod Brown, Washington, 10 February 2022) U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, applauded Reta Jo Lewis’ confirmation as President of the Export-Import (EXIM) Bank. Lewis was confirmed by a vote of 56-40. Lewis currently serves as a Senior Fellow and Director of Congressional Affairs at the German Marshall Fund, where she leads bipartisan efforts to strengthen transatlantic cooperation. Before joining the German Marshall Fund, Ms. Lewis served in the Obama Administration as the State Department’s first-ever Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs. Reuters noted that EXIM starts a new era as Lewis takes office as the first person of color and the first Black woman to lead the agency, facing challenges on competing with China’s massive export financing, climate change and racial equity.

https://www.brown.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/brown-lewis-confirmation-win...


Total’s East African crude oil pipeline ‘struggling’ to find financiers

(NationofChange, Costa Mesa CA, 8 February 2022) Campaigners have for years opposed the proposed pipeline and associated oil projects. They say that EACOP – which is set to be electrically heated to keep the oil at the right temperature – would cut through vital rivers and forest ecosystems. If the pipeline is built, over 100,000 people across Uganda and Tanzania would lose agricultural land, and thousands could lose their homes. TotalEnergies and partner China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) signalled a public intention to proceed with the project last week. They pledged to invest more than US$10 billion in developing crude oil production in East Africa, in addition to the estimated $3.5-$5 billion cost of the pipeline. However, a coalition of environmental and human rights groups opposing the pipeline, Stop EACOP, says the announcement is thin on detail and the project is not yet assured. Last month, HSBC, Mizuho and the United Overseas Bank all confirmed they are not supporting the project. The statements bring the total number of banks that have distanced themselves from the project to 11, including ANZ, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole, Credit Suisse, Royal Bank of Canada, Société Générale and UniCredit. After announcing the final investment decision, the shareholders of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (Eacop) now turn to looking for money.

https://www.nationofchange.org/2022/02/08/totals-east-african-crude-oil-pipeline...


AfCFTA Secretariat, Afreximbank Seal Deal on $10bn Fund to Boost African Economies

(This Day Live, Lagos, 10 February 2022) The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), yesterday in Cairo, signed an agreement on the management of the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund (ADF) that would require $10 billion over the next five to 10 years. The base fund is a facility that would support African countries to cope with the loss of revenues from import tariffs and the private sector to effectively participate in the new trading environment established under the AfCFTA. Already, Afreximbank has committed $1 billion towards the ADF, which is made up of a base fund, a general fund and a credit fund.

https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2022/02/10/afcfta-secretariat-afreximbank-...


AfreximBank Trade Centre Harare project to start soon

(Construction Review, Nairobi, 7 February 2022) AfreximBank Trade Centre will house the bank’s southern Africa regional office, that it is part of a bigger strategic plan to transform the bank’s regional offices and headquarters into a network of AATCs. The entire project cost is now estimated to be close to $100 million; however, precise figures are still being finalized. The Harare AATC will include 30 000 square meters of built space, including prime corporate office space, a four-star hotel, conferencing facilities, trade information services, a tech incubation lab, and other amenities. The African Export-Import Bank Africa Trade Centre (AATC), often known as Afreximbank, head office in Harare is taking form, with full drawings already sketched and building set to begin in the third quarter of this year. The project, which is anticipated to be completed by 2025, will make Harare a critical hub for delivering the African Continental Free Trade Agreement’s promise (ACfTA).

https://constructionreviewonline.com/biggest-projects/afreximbank-trade-centre-t...


Sustainability in export finance – the push for change

(TXF News, London, 2 February 2022) The volume of sustainable deals within the export finance sector is growing. But to take this forward positively across all industrial sectors requires a sensible debate with a clear pathway to ensure business is not lost. Widespread sustainability within export finance is something which has come relatively late to the framework of export credit agency-backed financing, particularly when compared to development bank financing activity. For some time there has been a wide perception that export financing is lagging behind DFI financing in terms of overall sustainability. But its here now and is on the agendas of ECAs and most international commercial banks alike. This has not been easy and will still be tough for ECAs going forward. Why? Because ECAs are there to support and service their exporters, and many of these companies are going to be involved in some way and in some part of the energy transition for decades to come. This is a big debate which will no doubt rage for some time to come. The issue of sustainability within the export finance industry grew last year with the publication of the International Chamber of Commerce White Paper on Sustainability in Export Finance.

https://www.txfnews.com/News/Article/7329/Sustainability-in-export-finance-the-p...


Italy clears hurdle to buy SACE in $4.8 bln deal

(Reuters, Rome, 25 January 2022) Italy approved a long-awaited decree needed for the Treasury to buy credit insurance agency SACE from state lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) in a deal expected to be worth around 4.25 billion euros ($4.81 billion). The Treasury wants to directly control the export agency, given its growing importance in supporting the economy. Rome supports SACE by partly sharing its risk exposure, which could potentially hurt public finances over time. SACE's governance will be in the hands of the Treasury, dealing a blow to Di Maio whose Foreign Affairs Ministry, according to one of the sources, is set to lose control over strategic decisions regarding the export credit. The deal reverses the divestment made during the 2012 sovereign debt crisis by the technocrat government of Mario Monti, which sold SACE to the CDP for around 6 billion euros.

https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/italy-approves-decree-buy-export-agency...


Building a bank for entrepreneurs is crucial, says CEO of Bpifrance

(New African Magazine, London, 11 February 2022) Bpifrance Assurance Export, a department of the investment bank Bpifrance, administers French state export guarantees management, transfered from the the Coface Group in 2015. Bpifrance notes that it helps stimulate French business’ growth by offering loans, providing guarantees and awarding buyer credit and supplier credit to encourage business abroad. It finances over 80 000 companies and provided over 6000 investment loans and 50000 short term loans in 2018 with a total production of 19 billion euros. Bpifrance is also the innovation agency for entrepreneurs with 1,3 billion euros of innovation soft loans distributed to 6000 companies every year.

https://newafricanmagazine.com/27763/


Canada Bangladesh FTA negotiations with EDC role?

(New Age Business, Dhaka, 8 February 2022) The governments of Bangladesh and Canada are working on signing a free trade agreement and a foreign investment promotion and protection agreement to increase bilateral trade between the two countries. Masud Rahman, president of the Canada-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that Export Development Canada (EDC) can play a role in increasing investment through the formation of ‘Bangladesh Fund’.

https://www.newagebd.net/article/162236/fta-negotiations-with-canada-underway-en...


Africa’s Fossil-Fuel Investment Trap

(Foreign Affairs, Congers NY, 17 February 2022) By continuing to finance gas expansion in Africa Nnimmo Bassey and Anabela Lemos argue that outside investors, including ECAs, are in fact displacing renewables, delaying Africa’s energy transition, and making it harder for countries to decarbonize and escape a harmful extractive economic model. Investments in renewable energy would produce an economic model that is cheaper, more reliable, and more democratic. Africa need not be seen as a site of destitution and need. It is a continent with rich knowledge, practices, and potential for establishing ecologically sound socioeconomic systems — ones that don’t replicate the mistakes made by so many others in the past century. Ending coal finance now but oil and gas investments later, as advocated by Nigeria's Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, puts off African development now and continues to channel these investments into corrupt regimes and/or inefficient technologies, and not into more immediate benefits from new efficient long-term electricity/energy technologies for Africans now.

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/africa/2022-02-17/africas-fossil-fuel-tr...


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