G20 Countries Bank on Fossil Fuels for COVID-19 Recovery Plans

G20 Countries Bank on Fossil Fuels for COVID-19 Recovery Plans

  • As a response to coronavirus pandemic, the G20 countries are banking on fossil fuel-based recovery.
  • The G20 countries announced 251 new or amended energy policies since the onset of the pandemic early this year.
World Record Set

Overview

  • Around $ 267.10 billion of public money to support different energy types was committed by G20 countries.
  • Over 55% or $ 150.81 billion of public money committed by G20 countries is allocated for supporting fossil fuel energy.
  • Out of this $ 126.91 billion is devoted to oil and gas.
  • On the other hand, clean energy gets only $ 88.63 billion of the total public money.
  • This is despite repeated warnings against the use of fossil fuel in recovery plans by inter-governmental bodies like
    • International Energy Agency (IEA)
    • The United Nations
  • In its Clean Energy Transition Summit, IEA attempted to encourage the participating countries to build their recovery plans and investment strategies in line with clean energy transition goals.
  • The public money invested in fossil fuel by countries translates to $ 32.89 per capita whereas for clean energy, it is $ 19.33.
  • Fossil fuel recovery as a component of the energy mi is the widest in the United States.
  • Brail is the only country in G20 to stay away from supporting fossil fuels.
  • The other countries whose commitments for clean energy rank higher than those for fossil fuels are
    • China
    • Germany
    • India
    • Japan
    • The United Kingdom
  • In the present crisis, it is vital to reinvent recovery methodologies for a green and clean future.
  • Investing in fossil fuels will aggravate the grim situation of the environment and global warming.

Examrace Team at Aug 22, 2021