Latest news with #SiobhánCurran
RTÉ News
30-04-2025
- Business
- RTÉ News
More than €31bn held in fossil fuel investments
Irish-based subsidiaries of investment companies held more than €31 billion in fossil fuel investments as of June 2024, according to a new report from ActionAid Ireland and Trócaire. Ireland's foreign direct investment model facilitates the investment. In 2023, the investments made into fossil fuel companies by investment managers based in Ireland generated an estimated 72.5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions (CO2e). This is more CO2e than the entire country of Ireland emitted in the same year. Siobhán Curran, head of policy and advocacy at Trócaire said: "Ireland's facilitation of fossil fuel investment on its shores is more than Ireland's yearly carbon footprint. "While Ireland has its targets to reduce emissions and phase out fossil fuels, this is being allowed to happen here." The top financial institutions for fossil fuel investment here were BlackRock (€18.9 billion), State Street (€4.4 billion), and Crédit Agricole (€2.1 billion). According to the report, 91% of the investments in fossil fuel companies by investment managers based in Ireland were to companies that have plans for fossil fuel expansion. Trócaire and ActionAid Ireland are calling on the government to tackle the climate crisis through both tax reform and corporate regulation of financial flows through Ireland that fund fossil fuels. "Governments and financial regulators must impose strict controls on fossil fuel financing, ending tax breaks for the most polluting industries. "A global financial system that is designed to prioritise profit over planetary survival is one that requires an urgent and deep overhaul," the report says. The two NGOs say that Ireland and the EU are moving in the "wrong direction" in this area. "The recently passed EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive excluded investments; and now the EU Commission's Omnibus legislative proposal threatens to undo the limited gains made on climate plans, as well as blocking future attempts for stronger action at national level," the report added. The burning of fossil fuels accounts for more than three-quarters of greenhouse gas emissions and 90% of all carbon dioxide emissions, according to the United Nations. The more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the warmer the global temperatures become. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued repeated warnings that the world should not warm past 1.5C. For every fraction of a degree above that, there are irreversible environmental consequences including rising sea levels, increased frequency of extreme weather events and ecosystem collapse. Continuation of current policies on the climate crisis will lead to a "catastrophic temperature rise" of up to 3.1C by 2100, according to the latest 'Emissions Gap' report from the UN Environment Programme. "Ireland is facilitating the reckless pursuit of profit by financial institutions and corporations, who continue to pursue further expansion of oil and gas in spite of all the warnings and at the expense of the planet," Ms Curran said. "The massive injustice is that it is the communities Trócaire work with in climate vulnerable countries that are feeling the worst impacts of these decisions. This is grossly unfair and contrary to the Paris Agreement and the Programme for Government," she added.
Irish Times
30-04-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
More than €31bn in fossil fuel investments ‘based in Ireland'
Almost €32 billion in fossil fuel investment was held by Irish-based subsidiaries of finance companies last year, a new report claims. The sheer level of money involved ranks Ireland 14th in global terms and renders the State a 'key global centre for investment'. The research report, The Hidden Truth: Ireland's Role in the Global Fossil Fuel Industry, is published by Trócaire and ActionAid Ireland on Wednesday. The organisations are calling for direct regulation of financial institutions that would require them to adopt and implement transition plans aligned with the Paris Agreement on climate. READ MORE 'Ireland is facilitating the reckless pursuit of profit by financial institutions and corporations, which continue to pursue further expansion of oil and gas in spite of all the warnings and at the expense of the planet,' said Siobhán Curran, Trócaire's head of policy and advocacy. 'The carbon footprint of these financial flows is bigger than Ireland's yearly emissions. This completely undermines efforts that are being taken to reduce emissions and ... means Ireland is playing an outsize role in fuelling the climate crisis.' ExxonMobil, which, according to the report, had €33.6 billion in profits in 2023, is singled out as the top fossil fuel investment held by asset managers based in Ireland. It also claims that, in 2023, such investments generated an estimated 72.5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, more than the levels produced nationally. Tax and corporate regulation reforms at EU level are called for given that the regulation of the financial sector 'remains weak and fragmented'. According to the authors, 91 per cent of investments made here were to companies that have plans for fossil fuel expansion. Patrick Guilbaud on bringing fine dining to Ireland, retirement plans, and not getting that third Michelin star Listen | 47:51 'Ireland may not have a domestic fossil fuel industry, but it is clear we are deeply complicit in fuelling the global climate emergency, providing a tax-friendly financial gateway for some of the most destructive industries on the planet,' said Karol Balfe, chief executive of ActionAid Ireland. The report states that, in monetary terms, as of June 2024, Irish-based subsidiaries of investment companies held €31.76 billion in bonds and shares issued by fossil fuel firms. 'Ireland ranks 14th globally in terms of fossil fuel investment by manager location,' it notes. 'Alongside Switzerland, Ireland is one of the only two jurisdictions with such significant fossil fuel investments without having a big fossil fuel industry of its own.' The largest volume of investments via Ireland includes US asset manager BlackRock with €18.9 billion, the report claims. US peer State Street was found to have €4.4 billion, and French banking conglomerate Crédit Agricole €2.1 billion. The report is critical of the State's foreign direct investment policy which it identifies as a contributing factor in cultivating a financial landscape that facilitates capital movement.
Irish Examiner
30-04-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Government urged to end €31bn fossil fuel investments
Ireland's hidden involvement in the fossil fuel industry has been revealed, with more than €31bn in investment flowing through this country. The Government has been called on to urgently regulate private finance and end fossil fuel investment expansion which campaigners say is wreaking havoc on the environment. A report published today raises concerns about the country's role in fuelling climate impacts beyond its borders, revealing that the top financial institutions using Ireland for fossil fuel investments include BlackRock at €18.9bn; State Street at €4.4bn, and €2.1bn from Credit Agricole. This makes Ireland a key global centre for investment in fossil fuels. The report published by Trócaire and ActionAid Ireland also reveals that Irish subsidiaries of multinational financial institutions generated 72.5m tons of CO₂ in emissions in 2023. This is 10.5m tons more than Ireland's total national emissions and 10 times the entire emissions of Sierra Leone. ActionAid chief executive Karol Balfe, said: 'The findings in this report are shocking. Ireland may not have a domestic fossil fuel industry, but it is clear we are deeply complicit in fuelling the global climate emergency, providing a tax-friendly financial gateway for some of the most destructive industries on the planet. "There is no credible path to climate safety if financial flows to fossil fuels, including those channelled through Ireland, are not shut down. This means direct regulation of financial institutions, requiring them to adopt and implement transition plans aligned with the Paris Agreement. Ireland has both a responsibility and an opportunity to lead. The 'Hidden Truth: Ireland's role in the global fossil fuel industry' study has found that in June 2024, Irish-based financial subsidiaries of investment companies held €31.76bn in fossil fuel investments, with 91% of these investments in companies engaged in fossil fuel expansion. Ireland ranks 14th globally in terms of fossil fuel investment by manager location, ahead of major fossil fuel producers like Brazil, Kuwait and Russia. The study warns if this country continues with its current strategy of "encouraging FDI at all costs", and relying on "weak" EU regulation, "we are headed for catastrophe". It calls on the Government to ban investments by Irish companies and Irish-based subsidiaries of multinational investment companies in fossil fuel expansion and require investors to implement climate transition plans consistent with a 1.5°C climate limit. Trócaire head of policy and advocacy Siobhán Curran warned that the climate crisis is causing disproportionate harm to those with the least responsibility for causing it. Ireland is facilitating the reckless pursuit of profit by financial institutions and corporations, who continue to pursue further expansion of oil and gas in spite of all the warnings and at the expense of the planet. The massive injustice is that it is the communities Trócaire work with in climate vulnerable countries that are feeling the worst impacts of these decisions," she said. She pointed out that the global north is responsible for 92% of all excess global carbon dioxide emissions, with the Global South responsible for a mere 8%. 'The carbon footprint of these financial flows is bigger than Ireland's yearly emissions — this completely undermines efforts that are being taken to reduce emissions and in fact means Ireland is playing an outsized role in fuelling the climate crisis. "Ireland has a responsibility to regulate these financial flows, particularly as EU corporate sustainability regulation is currently being dismantled, due the power of the corporate lobby.' The fossil fuel company which receives the most investment from asset managers based in Ireland is ExxonMobil. In 2023, ExxonMobil reported €33.63bn in profit. That is almost twice the GDP of Botswana (€18.1bn) and nearly three times Namibia's GDP (€11.5bn).
