Researchers have identified 425 coal, oil and gas extraction projects, already in operation or still under construction, whose cumulative CO2 emissions would blow up the global carbon budget. Their work was published on May 12 in the journal Energy Policy. They speak of “climate bombs”. “The term is the right one”, judge Lucie Pinson, director general of the NGO Reclaim Finance, an NGO affiliated with Friends of the Earth France, interviewed on Monday May 16 on franceinfo. “It indeed allows to embody the problem which can seem quite abstract for everyone”.
franceinfo: Is talking about “climate bombs” about these projects appropriate?
Lucia Pinson: The term is correct since the combined emissions of these projects represent twice the carbon budget available to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees. We are in a context of climate emergency. The International Energy Agency, but also the scientists of the IPCC have given an extremely clear procedure to follow in order to meet our climate objectives. Namely that no new fossil energy, gas, oil and coal projects should see the light of day. However, today, we have, as this study reveals, 425 on the table.
What type of project are we talking about concretely?
We are talking about huge coal mining projects like in China, or oil sands in Canada. More major oil projects like the one carried out by TotalÉnergies in East Africa. The EACOP project, which is linked to a new oil extraction project: the Tilenga project in Tanzania. These two projects will contribute to emit more than 34 million tons of CO2 per year, six times the emissions of Uganda.
When we talk about a carbon “bomb”, this term which is used by the authors of this study, it gives something very colorful…
It makes it possible to embody the problem which may seem quite abstract for everyone since generally, when we talk about the fight against climate change, we are talking about achieving neutrality by 2050. We are talking about decarbonization goals, which does not necessarily speak to the general public. And above all, these are quite distant objectives, in particular the famous objective of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. We speak from time to time of decarbonization objectives by 2020. quite far from reality today. And there, these 425 projects, these are extremely concrete things.
“It allows us to give the procedure to follow if we want to meet our long-term objectives, namely to prevent the deployment of these projects now.”
Lucie Pinson, director general of the NGO Reclaim Financeat franceinfo
Knowing that 40% of these projects had not yet started production in 2020, this study tells us, is there still time to abandon them?
The IPCC has identified the window of opportunity since we have three years to reverse the trend and reach the peak of our greenhouse gas emissions. Then after drastically reduce them. So, it is now that it is played. We currently have the period of general meetings, with in particular the general meeting of TotalÉnergies which is being held on May 25. Total will consult its shareholders on its climate plan which, it must be remembered, hides a strategy of expansion in fossil fuels. Total is the seventh company in the world to develop new oil and gas projects anywhere in the world. And therefore, it is essential that the largest shareholders, among which are AXA, BNP, but also Amundi, which is the asset management subsidiary of Crédit Agricole and which is the second largest shareholder of Total, vote against this climate plan. and deliver on their climate promises.