China's 'highly polluting project' decision to spur coal export credit subsidy talks

(Reuters, London, 30 September 2015) China's promise to curb public funding of "highly polluting projects" has isolated Japan and increased the pressure to close a deal to phase-out coal export subsidies after months of wrangling. The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has been hosting talks on the issue since last year. Wary of regional competition from China, Japan has been at the vanguard of opposition to phasing out coal export credits that help OECD nations send coal plant technology abroad and benefit companies such as Toshiba Corp. But on Friday in a joint U.S.-China statement on Climate Change, China signaled it would take similar steps to those already promised by the United States, the World Bank and others to end coal financing overseas.

Country: