New Delhi: The Institute of Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and International Accountability Project (IAP) on Tuesday released the Global MDB Investment in Petrochemicals Tracker. The tracker is an interactive database that visualises petrochemical investments across different sectors within the industry from 16 multilateral development banks (MDBs). The database is built using details from the Early Warning System (EWS) hosted by the International Accountability Project (IAP). It tracks 92 projects covering a total investment amount of USD10,042 million.
A key finding emerging from the database is that the World Bank group cumulatively funds 65% of the petrochemical projects tracked. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), which is a member institution of the World Bank group, has a 35% share of the total investment amount in such projects. This is followed by the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency’s (MIGA) 24% share. The World Bank itself has a 7% share.
Among other MDBs tracked, the European Investment Bank (EIB) share stands at 18%, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) at 6%, and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) at 2%.
Expansion and greenfield projects have a combined share of 57%, and decarbonisation projects comprise 14% of the total investments. Research and Development (R&D) receives a 10% share, including for research on alternative and toxic-free polymers. The decarbonisation projects include integrating renewable energy into existing plants, construction of hydrogen production facilities, and developing strategies to reduce emissions from the petrochemical industry.
At USD3,232 million, agrochemicals comprising fertilisers, ammonia, and urea receive the highest funding from MDBs, amounting to 32%. Polymers and plastic-related projects and petrochemical infrastructure receive the second and third highest investment at USD3,027 million and USD2,000 million respectively. Further, polymers and plastics-related projects form 66% of active project investments, while fertilisers receive 64% of the approved project investments.
The Southwest Asia and North Africa (SWANA) region receives 39% of the total investments, Africa 22%, Europe 20%, and Asia (excluding West Asia) 12%. In the Americas, South and North America receive 3% of the investments each.
Oman in SWANA, Nigeria in Africa, Belgium and Germany in Europe, and India, followed by China, and Indonesia, in Asia are key recipient countries in each region. In the Americas, Mexico, and then Argentina, receive the largest investments in the petrochemical industry.
“Among the investments studied, while 40% are in the completed category, 38% are approved or proposed, and 16% active or ongoing. IEEFA’s research over the past three years has pointed to oversupply in the industry, which is witnessing stressed profits. The petrochemical industry is also a proven hard-to-abate sector. Additionally, the current conflict in West Asia has underscored the vulnerabilities of the industry. In this context, MDBs’ continued interest in petrochemicals is high-risk on both financial and climate fronts,” says Swathi Seshadri, Energy Specialist, Petrochemicals, IEEFA South Asia.
“The Global MDB Petrochemical Tracker is a very important tool because it gives clear, standardised information on how MDBs are investing in the sector, which till now has been very hard to trace. This is an effective tool for policymakers, and it provides key stakeholders like researchers, advocates, and affected people the evidence needed to guide MDBs to fulfil their climate commitments,” says Alessandro Ramazzotti, Researcher, IAP.
“MDBs are backsliding on their climate commitments while continuing to finance petrochemical projects. As these investments sidestep the scrutiny applied to financing carbon-intensive projects, the costs are borne by affected people and the climate. MDBs must hold petrochemical investments to the same standards and safeguards as any other project.” says Vaishnavi Varadarajan, Program Coordinator – Asia Pacific, IAP.
