U.S. Government May Finance Massive Coal Projects in India, South Africa. Mongabay.com, August 26, 2010. "The United States Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank) voted on August 26 to seek a final review of a $900m loan for a controversial 3,960 MW coal-fired power plant in India, reports Pacific Environment, a San Francisco-based environmental group. The Sasan coal-fired Ultra Mega Power and Mine Project is one of nine 'Ultra Mega Power Plants' being pursued by the Indian government. Each plant is roughly equivalent of eight average U.S. coal fired power plants and will generate 26 to 27 million tons of carbon dioxide annually, or about 1.7%...
"The move was condemned by Doug Norlen, Policy Director for Pacific Environment. 'The Bank's board bowed to political pressure and in so doing wastes public financing to worsen their fossil fuel binge,' he said, noting that a recent Government Accountability Office report shows that 95% of Ex-Im's energy portfolio is based on fossil fuels. The investment trend looks to continue. The agency is now looking to fund the 4,800 MW Kusile coal project in South Africa. The plant would generate 36.8 million tons of carbon dioxide annually, increasing emissions from South Africa's energy sector by nearly 13% and the country's overall emissions by 9.7%. 'These public financing decisions will literally determine our future,' said Norlen. 'We can either help lead the world in a clean energy economy, or deepen the climate change crisis we are already in.' Pacific Environment and its coalition partners, including Friends of the Earth and the Sierra Club, are calling upon the Export-Import Bank to halt funding of fossil fuels projects overseas and instead focus on clean energy."
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