Export-Import Bank Announces New International Carbon Strategy

The Export-Import Bank of the United States has developed a new carbon policy that would include a $250-million facility for renewable-energy exports, Greenwire reported. Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred Hochberg was quoted as saying: "We want to help American manufacturers produce green technology for the world. This common-sense approach is good for the environment, it's good for business, and it's good for American workers." The bank offers direct loans and credit insurance, among other products, to facilitate trade financing.

The bank said it would improve its tracking and reporting of CO2 emissions from the projects it supported. Wrote Greenwire: "The bank has been tracking its CO2 emissions since 1998 and discloses the estimated emissions of large, pending projects, noted Phil Cogan, a bank spokesman. In fiscal 2008, the bank authorized $100.7 million for four power plants with an aggregate of 2.2 million metric tons of CO2 emissions per year, according the bank's annual report; the bank also authorized $1.5 billion for oil and gas projects, with an aggregate of 2.9 million metric tons of CO2 emissions a year."