Statistics on ExIm Bank’s Recent and Pending Fossil Fuel Emissions Compiled by Pacific Environment The following charts ExIm Bank’s estimate of recent and potential direct greenhouse gasses associated with projects that it finances. FY 2003 = 10 million Tonnes/yr of CO2 FY 2004 = 10.8 million Tonnes/yr of CO2 FY 2005 = 8.4 million Tonnes/yr of CO2 FY 2006 = 5.6 million Tonnes/yr of CO2 FY 2007 = 12.0 million Tonnes/yr of CO2 FY 2008 = 5.1 million Tonnes/yr of CO2 FY 2009 Potential = 30.096 million Tons/yr of CO2 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0
FY
FY
20 03 20 0 FY 4 20 0 FY 5 20 0 FY 6 20 FY 07 2 0 FY 20 09 Po 08 te nt ia l
Millon tons/yr CO2
(Source: ExIm Bank Annual Reports, available at http://www.exim.gov/about/reports/ar/ index.cfm and ExIm Bank’s estimate of emissions from projects with applications posted in FY 2009, available at http://www.exim.gov/products/policies/environment/envproj.cfm) Explanation: Figures for FY 20022008 are ExIm Bank’s estimate of direct emissions from fossil fuel projects that the agency authorized for financing in those years. Figure FY 2009 is ExIm Bank’s estimate of direct emissions from fossil projects posted in FY 2009. It is not yet known how many of the posted projects will be authorized for financing in FY 2009. Some will likely not be voted on by ExIm Directors until FY 2010, and therefore reducing ultimate FY 2009 emissions. However, the data demonstrate a sharp upward trend in applications for fossil fuel projects. It is believed that this trend is partially in response to the financial crisis, which led project sponsors to reconstruct financing proposals to reflect a greater reliance on ExIm Bank financing. These figures represent direct emissions from identifiable fossil fuel projects. Additionally, ExIm Bank supports a large number of transactions of goods and services for the fossil fuel sector that are not associated with identifiable projects, for example, oil and gas drilling and consulting services. Despite the fact that these transactions support the fossil fuel sector, ExIm Bank does not calculate and publish estimates of indirect
emissions associated with these transactions. For example, ExIm Bank’s FY 2009 indicates 2.5 billion in financing for foreign energy production and transmission including electric power generation and oil and gas exploration and refineries, as well as $1.2 billion for a wide range of services including to oil and gas drilling, training and consulting. Some of these transactions are not related to fossil fuel projects, however, ExIm Bank’s Annual Reports do not disaggregate this data. ExIm Bank financing for renewable energy is growing, but has consistently been a tiny sliver compared to its financing for fossil fuelrelated transactions. For example, in FY 2008, ExIm Bank authorized a record $30.4 million for renewable energy exports, which is less than 2% of the $1.6 billion in ExIm Bank authorizations for fossil fuel projects that year. If fossil fuel sector support not associated with specific fossil fuel projects is included, this percentage becomes even smaller.
2000 1800 1600 1400
Financing for Renew able Energy
1200 1000
Financing for identiiable Fossil Fuel Projects
800 600 400 200 0
2005 2006 2007 2008
Meanwhile, ExIm Bank finances a large number of transactions in support of large commercial aircraft which emit a very significant amount of greenhouse gasses. For example, in FY 2008, almost one third of ExIm Bank’s total financing portfolio ($5.5 billion out of $14.4 billion total) went to support the export of 97 new U.S. manufactured, large commercial aircraft. We know that international aviation is a significant source of global carbon emissions accounting for 4% of global annual emissions today, with the possibility that it may rise as high as 15% by 2050 if left unregulated.