- The decision by Credit Agricole follows the deal reached at the COP28 climate summit to reduce global consumption of fossil fuels.
- Credit Agricole would cut financed carbon emissions tied to the oil and gas sectors by 75% by 2030.
Today, France’s second-largest listed bank, Credit Agricole, said it would stop financing new fossil fuel extraction projects. The firm stated that it would publish its exposure to the sector as part of its new climate targets. The announcement follows the deal struck at the COP28 climate summit among representatives of nearly 200 countries who agreed to reduce global consumption of fossil fuels to avert the worst of climate change.
Credit Agricole said it would cut financed carbon emissions tied to the oil and gas sectors by 75 per cent by 2030, compared with its previously announced 30 per cent reduction target. More European banks are pledging to reduce fossil fuel financing incentivised by new European rules. British banks, NatWest and HSBC and Dutch bank ING, are among those to have announced restrictions on such lending.
According to the NGO-authored Banking on Climate Chaos report, Barclays is the only European lender in the top ten financiers of fossil fuels between 2016 and 2022. The report lists JPMorgan, Citi and Wells Fargo as the top three financiers. Credit Agricole said that by 2030, it would triple its annual financing of renewable energy projects to 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion) from 1 billion euros. The firm added that it would hike its investment bank unit’s exposure to low-carbon energies between 2020 and 2025 by 80 per cent, aiming to reach 13.3 billion euros.