Positive Money welcomes climate conditions for BoE energy bailout

London, 17 Oct 2022

Firms participating in the Bank of England’s new Energy Markets Financing Scheme will be required to meet strict conditions, including setting out net zero transition plans and disclosing climate risk.

Fran Boait, executive director of research and campaign group Positive Money, commented: 

“It’s good to see that the Bank of England and Treasury have learned the lessons of previous corporate bailout schemes and are finally getting serious about imposing conditions on companies accessing public funds.

“As recommended by think tanks, energy firms benefiting from this scheme will not only be prevented from using public money to enrich their shareholders through share buybacks and dividend payouts, but they will also be required to deliver decarbonisation plans and disclose their exposure to climate risks.

“Now that policymakers have proved it can be more active in steering fossil-dependent energy companies, they should commit to establishing a financing facility to explicitly drive the UK’s transition towards clean energy. A ‘Clean Energy Financing Scheme’ could provide cheap finance to firms to invest in renewables, energy storage and grid capacity.”

Notes

1. Joint HM Treasury and Bank of England Energy Markets Financing Scheme (EMFS) – Market Notice 17 October 2022: https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/markets/market-notices/2022/october/joint-hmt-boe-emfs-market-notice-17-october-2022 

2. Positive Money, the New Economics Foundation and the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose released a statement last week calling for conditions to be attached to the Energy Markets Financing Scheme: https://positivemoney.org/2022/10/emergency-boe-scheme-should-not-give-energy-firms-a-free-pass-say-think-tanks/ 

3. Positive Money report on the Covid Corporate Financing Facility, July 2020: https://positivemoney.org/publications/ccff/ 

4. For more information or to speak to a spokesperson, please contact Anna Pick at 07948802104 or press@positivemoney.org.uk 

About Positive Money

Positive Money is a research and campaign organisation working towards a money and banking system which supports a fair, democratic and sustainable economy. Set up in the aftermath of the financial crisis, Positive Money is a not-for-profit company funded by charitable trusts and foundations, as well as small donations from its network of over 65,000 supporters. www.positivemoney.org.uk