View in Browser

Sign up for Reuters newsletters

By Sharon Kimathi, Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital

Hello!

Climate litigation against fossil fuel firms takes the focus this week as Britain’s High Court and the United States’ Supreme Court hear cases against big oil conglomerates over their role in the worsening climate crisis. And over in today’s ESG Spotlight, Alessandra Korap Munduruku, an Indigenous environmentalist, was awarded a prize for leading a campaign against mining corporations in the Amazon rainforest.

Britain’s High Court is expected to decide whether to grant Greenpeace permission to proceed with a challenge to the country’s last oil and gas licensing round on climate grounds, the activist group said.

Last year, Britain held its first oil and gas exploration licensing round since 2019, with the government saying it is looking to boost domestic hydrocarbon output as Europe weans itself off Russian fuel and after energy prices spiked.

Greenpeace says the government and the oil and gas regulator NSTA should take into account the emissions from burning the oil and gas produced as a result of the licensing round, rather than merely the emissions from the extraction process.

Typically, the greenhouse gases released from combustion, known as Scope 3, make up about 90% of hydrocarbon emissions.

A general view of the Royal Courts of Justice, more commonly known as the High Court, in London, Britain, November 2, 2020. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

“We’ve had warning after warning that there must be no new oil, and now time is running out. Yet the government continues to ignore the experts, approving new oil and gas without even bothering to check the full climate impact,” said Philip Evans, Greenpeace UK’s climate campaigner.

Elsewhere, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear bids by Exxon Mobil, Suncor Energy, Chevron and others to move lawsuits filed by state and local governments accusing the oil companies of worsening climate change out of state courts and into federal courts.

The justices turned away five appeals by the oil companies of lower court decisions that determined that the lawsuits belonged in state court, a venue often seen as more favorable to plaintiffs than federal court. The lawsuits were filed by the state of Rhode Island and municipalities or counties in California, Colorado, Hawaii and Maryland.

Numerous state and local governments have pursued litigation against oil companies seeking climate-related damages. A separate appeal filed by the oil companies challenging lower court decisions in cases out of New Jersey and Delaware is still pending before the Supreme Court.

Theodore Boutrous, an attorney for Chevron, expressed confidence that the cases will be dismissed in state court. Boutrous said the lawsuits are an issue of “national and global magnitude” that require a coordinated federal response, “not a disjointed patchwork” of actions from numerous state courts.

“These wasteful lawsuits in state courts will do nothing to advance global climate solutions, nothing to reduce emissions and nothing to address climate-related impacts,” Boutrous added.

Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said his state is preparing for trial after “nearly a half decade of delay tactics” from the oil companies. The Supreme Court’s action “marks an important milestone,” Neronha added.

Demonstrators participate in a ‘Stop Dirty Banks’ protest outside JP Morgan Chase headquarters in New York City, U.S., March 21, 2023. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs

Responding to the UK government taking part in talks to build new offshore wind farm “islands” in the North Sea, Sam Richards, campaign director for pro-growth campaign group Britain Remade, said:

“We welcome the UK government’s involvement in talks to develop new offshore wind farms with our European neighbors, and the group’s commitment to quadruple the amount of energy generated from offshore wind over the next five years.

“However, without overhauling the planning system, which has for too long held back the delivery of major infrastructure developments in the UK, it is hard to see how such a commitment could be met.

“40% of all major infrastructure projects have been delayed at the planning stage since 2017. 

“The Norfolk Vanguard offshore wind farm was subject to a 26-month delay after having to wait over two years for approval from the Secretary of State. And in February the Hornsea Four project was hit with a last-minute 5-month delay, despite being in development since 2018.

“If we want to reduce energy bills, cut our dependence on expensive foreign gas and be energy secure in less than seven-years’ time, we need to end these delays.

“The government must also move at pace to drop the ban on new onshore wind farms, the cheapest source of energy available.”

In light of Reuters Energy and ESG Editor and curator of Sustainable Switch Sharon Kimathi, speaking at the Sustainability Forum in Vilnius, Lithuania, it felt apt to check the region’s progress on renewables. Data from the International Energy Agency shows that Lithuania’s renewable power production was ahead of its neighbors in Latvia and Estonia, but took a dip in 2021 as Latvia ramped up its clean electricity production.

Alessandra Korap Munduruku, paddles in a canoe in an undisclosed area in the Amazon, Brazil January 15, 2023. Goldman Environmental Prize/Handout via REUTERS 

Today’s ESG Spotlight shines a light on Alessandra Korap Munduruku who was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for leading a campaign that led mining corporations to respect her people’s Indigenous territory in the Amazon rainforest. Elsewhere, a Dutch startup that has tested solar panel arrays on the open ocean says it has won its first commercial contract to install a small amount of capacity at a wind farm in the North Sea. 

In May 2021, Anglo American agreed to withdraw 27 approved research applications to mine on Indigenous lands, according to the foundation, including Alessandra Munduruku’s Sawré Muybu territory on 400,000 acres of rainforest on the Tapajos River.

“The prize recognizes our struggle and tells the world ‘We are here’. Multinational companies cannot come in without consulting Indigenous people,” she told Reuters by telephone. The British miner said it has engaged with the Brazilian Indigenous Peoples Association (APIB) and environmental NGO Amazon Watch in recent years to address their concerns.

Power-generating windmill turbines are seen at the Eneco Luchterduinen offshore wind farm near Amsterdam, Netherlands September 26, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman//File Photo

Until now, the company Oceans of Energy has relied on subsidies. In contrast to a slightly larger array the company has tested since 2019, the new system capable of providing energy for around 500 households will be physically connected to the Dutch electric grid from 2025. 

The contract “is big news for us as until now it has been all subsidies,” spokeswoman Ariane van Hoeken said, referring to the company’s roughly 20 million euros ($22 million) in funding to date. Oceans of Energy has said it believes solar farms will eventually become commonplace at offshore wind farms.

“The Global North should not think we can do an energy transition without the Global South. The energy transition can be the biggest inclusion program in the world if we do it right.” 

Markus Müller, Deutsche Bank’s ESG Chief Investment Officer

Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content.

Sustainable Switch is sent three times a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here.

Want to stop receiving this newsletter? Unsubscribe here.
To manage which newsletters you’re signed up for, click here.

Reuters Terms & Conditions and Privacy Statement