Today’s ESG Updates
- Banks Increase Fossil Fuel Funding: Global banks raised fossil fuel financing to $906bn in 2025, up 8% from last year.
- EU Revamps COP31 Strategy: The EU will pursue a more focused and coordinated approach at COP31 climate talks.
- China Launches Underwater Data Center: Shanghai opened the world’s first wind-powered underwater data center, cutting energy and water use.
- Canada Backs Airlines: Canada introduced a C$150m loan program to help airlines manage rising fuel costs.
World banks increase annual fossil fuel support to $906bn
The world’s largest banks committed $906bn in financing to the fossil fuel industry last year. This financing represents an increase of $64bn, or nearly 8%, compared to 2024. These 65 largest banks are making decisions that are incompatible with international agreements aimed at restraining rising global temperatures.
Since the 2015 Paris climate deal, the world’s largest banks have funneled $8.7tn to the fossil fuel industry. JPMorgan Chase is the leading global financier of fossil fuels, providing $58bn to the sector last year, which is a 13% increase from 2024. Bank of America committed the second-largest amount, followed by Japanese banks MUFG and Mizuho Financial, with another American bank, Citigroup, at number five, and the UK bank Barclays at number eight.
Almost all fossil fuel financing originates from six jurisdictions: the US, Canada, Japan, China, the UK, and the EU. Out of the top 65 largest banks, 26 reduced their fossil fuel financing last year, led by BNP Paribas, UBS, and La Caixa. Venture Global, Enbridge, and Energy Transfer were the three largest recipients of borrowed funds in 2025.
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Further reading: World’s largest banks pledged $906bn to fossil fuel companies in ‘unfathomable’ increase in 2025, report finds
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EU redesigns climate strategy with sharper focus for COP31
The EU aims to target fewer, clearer goals at the annual COP31 climate summit in Turkey in November to avoid repeating the failures of the previous year’s talks. The internal 15-page strategy document was prepared by Ireland’s upcoming presidency of the 27-nation European Union.
The previous global climate conference, COP30, in Brazil, ended without deals on EU priorities to accelerate emission cuts and reduce fossil fuel use. Last year’s EU negotiating mandate did not include positions on key topics that dominated the talks, specifically a roadmap to phase out fossil fuels and plans to increase climate funding. Diplomats attributed the EU’s past failure to push its agenda partly to a lack of preparation.
Ireland’s strategy involves dividing negotiating responsibilities among member states’ ministers, so they are deployed strategically before and during the summit rather than just reacting to events.
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Further reading: ‘Short, sharp and more strategic’: the EU’s new approach to climate talks
Related Articles
Here is a list of articles selected by our Editorial Board that have gained significant interest from the public:
World’s first wind-powered underwater data center launches in Shanghai
The world’s first wind-powered underwater data center, the Shanghai Lingang undersea data center demonstration project, has launched operations off the coast of Shanghai to address energy challenges posed by China’s artificial intelligence boom. The joint project between HiCloud Technology and state-owned China Communications Construction launched in May with a capacity of 24 megawatts. The data center received 1.6bn yuan (£177m) in investment from the Chinese government.
Located more than 10km off the coast and submerged 10 meters below the water’s surface, the system is powered by a nearby offshore wind farm. Natural cooling from seawater reduces the data center’s power consumption by more than one-fifth compared to land-based facilities. In traditional land-based data centers, between 25% and 40% of total electricity demand is used just to pipe chilled water to prevent server overheating. Placing data centers in the sea eliminates the need for freshwater supplies as global datacenter water footprints are expected to reach 9.3 trillion liters by 2030, an amount that could service the annual domestic water needs of all 1.3 billion residents of sub-Saharan Africa.
Experts and marine biologists note that while underwater datacenters pose risks to marine ecosystems by disturbing sediments or causing localized seawater heating, these risks are likely manageable.
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Further reading: World’s first wind-powered underwater datacentre starts operating in China
Canada unveils C$150 million loan program to support domestic airlines
The Canadian government is launching a new loan program providing up to C$150 million ($107.5 million) in repayable liquidity support to eligible domestic airlines. The program is designed to help carriers cope with the effects of the high jet fuel prices caused by the war in Iran, maintain operations, protect jobs, and keep fares affordable. Airlines that utilize the government loans must restrict executive compensation and maintain their domestic operations.
The fuel crisis caused the first major casualty in May when U.S. low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines ceased operations. Several low-cost carriers in the United States had previously sought $2.5 billion in relief, but U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated the government would not bail them out.
Canadian carrier WestJet opposes the loan program, arguing that the government should focus on a sustainable aviation industry rather than “costly and market-distorting subsidies.” Air Canada, the country’s largest carrier, stated that it will not need the program, as it has a strong balance sheet built in anticipation of fuel price spikes and can manage the situation independently.
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Further reading: Canada launches loan program to help airlines deal with high fuel prices
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by the authors are their own, not those of impakter.com — In the Cover Photo: A view of skyscrapers from below. Cover Photo Credit: Sean Pollock.
