UKEF named best sustainable finance ECA despite continued review of Mozambique LNG

UK Export Finance (UKEF), was named the world’s best for sustainable finance at the TXF Global Export Finance Conference in Lisbon on Tuesday.June 7 despite its continued promotion of a $1.5 billion LNG project in Mozambique.UKEF claims to allocate £3.6 billion to “sustainable” projects, or 49% of its £7.4 billion 2021/22 expenditures, defining them as clean energy, healthcare and critical infrastructure projects. Critical infrastructure however included £1.1 billion for Turkey’s 500 km electric railway, a lower-carbon alternative to current air and road travel, but hardly a “green” investment.Last autumn, Global Trade Review reported the government’s own inquiry into aid provided by the agency, which revealed that nearly 90% of the £12.3bn of support it committed in 2020/21 went to just nine companies. In terms of geographical spread, 92% of UKEF’s support in 2020/21 went to just 10 countries, with Qatar, Egypt and Mozambique together receiving nearly two-thirds of the total.