August 2019 Fifty-seven per cent of Vietnam’s planned coal power capacity has faced repeated delay, with postponements to 93% of the projects financed by private, often foreign investors, under the “build-operate-transfer” model. Across the projects, investors are struggling with a cumulative delay of 100 years. Meanwhile, approved solar and wind … Read More
Media release: Japan’s MUFG commits to end financing for new coal projects, NGOs call for further steps
16 May 2019 | Joint release: No Coal Japan Japanese and international environmental NGOs welcomed Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG)’s release of its revised environmental and social policy framework, which now excludes finance to new coal power projects. Coming only days after Singapore’s three major banks also ended coal finance, … Read More
Japanese megabanks faced with international ad in the Financial Times
NGOs from Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan and around the world have placed a full-page advertisement in the Financial Times today calling for Japanese megabanks – Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), and Mizuho Financial Group (Mizuho) – to stop funding coal power. MUFG, SMBC, and Mizuho, along … Read More
DBS gambles on coal, as scrutiny arrives at its AGM
25 April 2019 At the annual general meeting of DBS today, the Singaporean bank was challenged over its plans to excuse several proposed projects from its policy to stop funding new coal power. Last Thursday DBS released what, in all fairness, was a pretty good policy on coal power plants. … Read More
Media release: JBIC and commercial banks shamelessly agree to finance Van Phong 1, despite multiple unresolved issues
19 April 2019 The decision by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and a consortium of commercial banks to finance the proposed Van Phong 1 coal-fired power station in Vietnam has been branded as shameless and cowardly by clean energy advocates. JBIC announced on its website that financing had … Read More
OCBC bank ends new coal power lending, except for two projects in Vietnam
17 April 2018 OCBC’s chief executive officer Samuel Tsien said in an interview earlier this week that OCBC will not fund any more new coal – but will remain in two projects in Vietnam. Subscription news sources suggest these projects are Van Phong 1 and Vung Ang 2. “OCBC’s decision … Read More
Media release: New Japanese bank policies rule out a third of overseas coal plant finance
28 August 2018: New coal policies should rule out providing financial support to close to a third of the coal-fired power stations (by capacity) currently under consideration by Japan’s three major commercial banks, according to a new analysis released today by environmental finance group Market Forces. In implementing their new … Read More
The financial backers of Vietnam’s latest 3 power stations
Reuters is reporting that, with Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc preparing to visit Japan, licences will be awarded on three proposed new coal-fired power stations that would be heavily backed by Japanese funding. The article does not name the plants, but Market Forces is aware that the three mentioned are Namh … Read More