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Climate campaigners sue BNP Paribas over fossil fuel finance
(The Guardian, 28 Feb 2023) Action against one of Europe’s largest financial institutions is the first climate-related lawsuit against a commercial bank.
French campaigners are suing one of Europe’s largest financial institutions for financing fossil fuels in the first climate-related lawsuit against a commercial bank.
Oxfam France, Friends of the Earth France and Notre Affaire à Tous accuse BNP Paribas of supporting companies that aggressively develop new oil and gas fields and infrastructure, despite repeated calls by scientists to stop investment in fossil fuels.
Their lawsuit was filed in a Paris court on Thursday under France’s corporate duty of vigilance law, which requires all large businesses headquartered in France and international corporations with a significant presence there to set out clear measures to prevent human rights violations and environmental damage.
BNP Paribas is the EU’s largest funder of fossil fuel expansion. Campaigners are particularly concerned about the huge carbon majors it has as clients, including Total, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, ENI, Repsol and Equinor. These companies are involved in more than 200 new fossil fuel projectsscheduled for approval by 2025, which would collectively produce about 8.6bn tonnes of carbon dioxide.
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The Guardian, 28 Feb 2023: Climate campaigners sue BNP Paribas over fossil fuel finance
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