blog
external news
our news
NGOs release the 2020 Global Coal Exit List
935 companies that banks, investors and insurers need to avoid
Banks and coal infrastructure
BankTrack
For any feedback or questions on this page please contact us at
climate@banktrack.org
Share this page:
Coal vessel. Photo: Pim GMX, via FlickrGo directly to: coal infrastructure policy table and coal infrastructure exclusion table
Banks and coal infrastructure
Coal has the highest climate and environmental impact of all conventional fossil fuels. Unlike oil and gas, coal is a solid that cannot flow through a pipeline and thus needs a vast amount of infrastructure to extract and transport coal to power plants. The dirtiest type of coal, lignite, has a low energy density and is therefore not economically viable to transport over long distances. This is why lignite is often burned close to the lignite mine, as is the case for the massive lignite mines in, for example, Germany and Poland. Regular coal, however, has a more global character and is shipped to wherever demand is highest. Often, ports need to be constructed or expanded to load coal onto ships or to supply nearby coal power plants with vast quantities of coal. Examples of this include the construction of the Adani Abbot Point Terminal, which is built to ship Adani’s coal, and the Payra Port coal terminal, which will supply the nearby coal power plants. Coal is also often transported via rail lines from coal mines or ports to coal power plants. Major coal infrastructure projects like these are essential in supplying coal to power plants around the globe. Coal infrastructure is therefore an integral part of the coal sector, just like coal mining and coal power.
Banks and coal infrastructure
The severity of the climate crisis requires that banks must urgently take steps to disengage from financing business activities and projects that continue the world's reliance on fossil fuels. Banks must therefore end support for all new coal infrastructure projects and implement a full phase-out for financing coal infrastructure projects, in line with the Paris Climate Agreement.
Bank policies on coal infrastructure are often a part of policies on coal mining and/or coal power. At this point, French banks Société Générale, Crédit Mutuel, Crédit Agricole and the Italian bank UniCredit are the only banks that have made strong commitments regarding coal infrastructure.
Bank policy scores on coal infrastructure
BankLast update
Country
Details
Laggard
Follower
Front runner
Leader
ABN AMRO
2020-03-01
NLD
0
0
0
Agricultural Bank of China
2020-03-01
CHN
0
0
0
ANZ
2020-10-29
AUS
2
2
0
Bank of America
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
Bank of China
2020-03-01
CHN
0
0
0
Bank of Montreal (BMO Financial Group)
2020-03-01
CAN
0
0
0
Barclays
2020-03-01
GBR
0
0
0
BBVA
2020-03-01
ESP
0
0
0
BNP Paribas
2020-07-22
FRA
5
5
0
China Construction Bank
2020-03-01
CHN
0
0
0
CIBC
2020-03-01
CAN
0
0
0
Citigroup
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
Commerzbank AG
2020-03-01
DEU
0.5
0.5
0
Commonwealth Bank of Australia
2020-03-01
AUS
0
0
0
Crédit Agricole
2020-03-01
FRA
13
13
0
Credit Mutuel-CIC
2020-03-01
FRA
15
15
0
Credit Suisse Group
2020-08-01
CHE
2
2
0
DBS Bank
2020-03-01
SGP
0
0
0
Deutsche Bank
2020-03-01
DEU
1
1
0
Goldman Sachs
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
HSBC
2020-03-01
GBR
0
0
0
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC)
2020-03-01
CHN
0
0
0
ING Group
2020-03-01
NLD
2
2
0
Intesa Sanpaolo
2020-03-01
ITA
0
0
0
JPMorgan Chase
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG)
2020-03-01
JPN
0
0
0
Mizuho
2020-03-01
JPN
0
0
0
Morgan Stanley
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
National Australia Bank
2020-03-01
AUS
0
0
0
Natixis
2020-03-01
FRA
1
1
0
NatWest Group (formerly RBS)
2020-03-01
GBR
0
0
0
OCBC
2020-03-01
SGP
0
0
0
PNC Bank
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
Royal Bank of Canada
2020-03-01
CAN
0
0
0
Santander
2020-03-01
ESP
0
0
0
Scotiabank
2020-03-01
CAN
0
0
0
Société Générale
2020-07-31
FRA
15
15
0
Standard Chartered
2020-03-01
GBR
0
0
0
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC)
2020-03-01
JPN
0
0
0
TD bank Financial Group
2020-03-01
CAN
0
0
0
UBS
2020-03-01
CHE
0
0
0
UniCredit Group
2020-09-04
ITA
15
15
0
United Overseas Bank
2020-03-01
SGP
0
0
0
US Bancorp
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
Wells Fargo
2020-03-01
USA
0
0
0
Westpac Banking Corporation
2020-03-01
AUS
1
1
0
Explanation
The point-based policy ranking assesses bank policies in four ways:
1) Restriction on direct financing for coal infrastructure projects.
-
None (0), weak exclusion (1), strong exclusion (3)
2) Restriction on financing for companies that expand coal infrastructure.
-
None (0), weak exclusion (2), strong exclusion (4)
3) The bank’s commitment to phase-out financing for coal infrastructure.
-
None (0), exposure reduction (1), weak phase-out (2), strong phase-out (4)
4) The bank’s commitment to exclude companies active in coal infrastructure above a certain threshold.
-
None (0), enhanced due diligence (0.5), weak exclusion threshold (2), strong exclusion threshold (4), full exclusion (5)
A bank can obtain a total of 16 policy points for its coal infrastructure policy. Based on this score banks are then classified as laggards (0-4 points), followers (4.5-8 points), front runners (8.5-12 points) or leaders (12.5-16 points)
Banks excluding finance for coal infrastructure
A number of banks have already taken steps to fully or partially exclude coal infrastructure or companies involved in coal infrastructure operations from their investments. The table below lists banks that have taken such steps.
Exclusion table coal infrastructure
BankLast update
Country
Details
Project
Company
ANZ
2020-10-29
AUS
0
-1
BNP Paribas
2020-07-22
FRA
0
99
Crédit Agricole
2020-03-01
FRA
0
-2
Credit Mutuel-CIC
2020-03-01
FRA
0
99
Credit Suisse Group
2020-08-01
CHE
0
-1
Deutsche Bank
2020-03-01
DEU
0
-1
Natixis
2020-03-01
FRA
0
-1
Société Générale
2020-07-31
FRA
0
99
UniCredit Group
2020-09-04
ITA
0
99
Westpac Banking Corporation
2020-03-01
AUS
0
-1
Explanation
This table lists banks that have adopted a full ( ) or partial ( ) exclusion policy for coal infrastructure projects and/or companies. Click on 'Details' for the rationale of this assessment for each bank.
See the Coal Policy Tool from Reclaim Finance for a more in-depth analysis of coal policies from banks (and other financial institutions).
Feedback welcome
Our policy assessments are always a work in progress and we very much welcome any feedback, especially from banks included in them. You can of course also contact us for more information on specific scores and the latest policy changes. Please get in touch at climate@banktrack.org.
News
Documents
Type:
Year: