Counter Balance, together with 14 civil society organisations, has sent a joint letter to the European Investment Bank (EIB) on the implementation of the second phase of the Climate Bank Roadmap (2026–2030).
Our call is for the Bank to stop procrastinating and stay on track to becoming the EU Climate Bank. The combination of the climate and current energy crisis caused by the continued dominance of imported fossil fuels in our economies makes it clear: there can be no room for derogations behind closed doors. The bank needs to know that.
Reducing emissions from all financed operations – both direct and indirect – must be an absolute priority, without resorting to false solutions that hinder the transition. The EIB and the EU member states, which are its shareholders, also have legal climate obligations. The Bank should maximise its environmental, social, and economic impact by avoiding solutions that are more harmful and often more costly. This includes Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), long-distance and export-oriented hydrogen infrastructure, and Small & Advanced Modular Reactors (SMRs/AMRs). Instead, it should opt for the use of technologies that deliver the greatest environmental, social, and economic benefits.
