Share this on social media
France must withdraw from Energy Charter Treaty, climate advisors say
(EurActiv, 20 Oct 2022) France’s High Climate Council has urged Paris and the EU to follow in the footsteps of the Netherlands and Spain by withdrawing from the Energy Charter Treaty, arguing that the international trade pact is “incompatible” with the EU’s green objectives.
The ECT is an international agreement signed in the 1990s to protect investments in energy infrastructure in former Soviet states.
But in recent years it has been used by fossil fuel and renewable energy companies to sue governments for regulatory changes that threaten their returns on investments.
The treaty is now being questioned for promoting fossil fuel interests, leaving EU member states torn between their legal obligations under the ECT and their commitment to decarbonise under the Paris Agreement on climate change.
According to the French advisers, “only a withdrawal from the ECT […] would make it possible to remove the treaty’s incompatibility with decarbonisation targets for 2030”, if not 2050.
After Spain last week, the Netherlands on Tuesday (19 October) confirmed its intention to withdraw from the ECT unilaterally, citing its climate obligations.
External link
EurActiv, 20 Oct 2022: France must withdraw from Energy Charter Treaty, climate advisors say
