The EU countries plan a call for phasing out coal power and ending fossil fuel subsidies globally as the bloc’s foreign policy shifts to center around climate change.
On Monday, the ministers of the EU would likely finalize the statement.
The statement would provide a clear timeline for a global phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies, which includes phasing out coal in energy production and ending immediately all financing of new coal infrastructure.
“EU energy diplomacy will discourage all further investments into fossil fuel-based energy infrastructure projects in third countries unless they are fully consistent with an ambitious, clearly defined pathway towards climate neutrality,” the EU stated.
Last month, EU countries agreed to slash emissions by 2030, by at least 55% from the 1990 levels. The bloc plans to ensure its step is followed by other countries by leveraging its economic and diplomatic weight.
The draft statement also mentioned that the future EU trade deals must match its climate ambition.
Wendel Trio, director of NGO coalition Climate Action Network Europe, said that the EU is also required to completely phase out its fossil fuel subsidies, which, in 2018, took almost a third of the bloc’s EUR159 billion (USD193.5 billion) energy subsidies.
