Giant coal power station gets greenlight19 April 2010
Eskom, a South African energy company, applied for a US$3.75 billion World Bank loan to fund the Medupi coal-fired power plant.
On Thursday 8 April, the World Bank made the decision to go ahead with the loan.
A loan which makes a mockery of its claim that it's helping the fight against climate change.
With this loan the World Bank has approved funding for one of the world's largest coal-fire power stations in South Africa.
groundWork (Friends of the Earth South Africa) opposes the Medupi project and the loan. As do many other South African civil society organisations.
The Medupi plant will:
- Release at least 25 million tonnes of CO2 per year for decades.
- Significantly impact the health, land, air and water of local communities.
- Mostly supply energy for industrial users, not communities.
World Bank
The World Bank uses taxpayers' money to fund development projects around the world.
Funding this project places a huge question mark against its administrative role in international climate finance.
The project
Eskom's proposal is not in the interests of poor communities in South Africa.
Approving the loan undermines both them and the global fight against climate change.
The loan is akin to fighting fire with petrol.
The vote
Unlike most approval mechanisms, the World Bank doesn't actually vote on projects.
Instead it's up to individual countries to voice their decent at critical meetings.
The UK, Netherlands, Italy, Norway and the US all abstained from the vote.
Whilst not a direct challenge to the World Bank funding such dirty development, it is an important step in the right direction.
Further information
groundWork's letter to the World Bank
groundWork/Friends of the Earth South Africa's letter to the World Bank dated 1 April 2010 setting out major concerns.
South Africa civil society letter
A sign-on statement prepared by groundWork and other South African civil society groups with list of signatories from around the world.
UK NGO letter to DfID
Letter from UK organisations to Douglas Alexander at the Department for International Development and the UK's World Bank Executive Director, Susanna Moorehead, setting out our concerns about the project from a UK perspective.
Eskom factsheet
Further information about the project and loan.
