ING to accelerate plans to exit oil and gas sector, Ending financing by 2040

Dutch bank ING plans to put an end to its financing of projects which involve the exploration for oil and gas fields, and the extraction of those fossil fuels. The bank told Reuters that it plans to follow the agreement reached at the recent United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP28, by shifting more attention from fossil fuel projects to sustainable energy. The bank intends to triple its financing of renewable energy projects within two years.

The bank's top executive, Steven van Rijswijk, said it will make a 35 percent cut in loans to finance the exploration or extraction of oil and gas by 2030. “Initially we had said we would bring down our upstream oil and gas exposure by 50% by 2040 and now we are saying that we’re going to be completely out,” Van Rijswijk told Reuters

If the bank reaches its 2030 goal, it will also reduce emissions tied to the bank's investments by half. Van Rijswijk added that the bank's decision was in part based on the International Energy Agency's call to cap global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius by getting developed economies out of the oil and gas sector before 2040.

The CEO also said the bank would boost its financing of sustainable energy projects. Last year, that equaled 2.5 billion euros. Van Rijswijk wants the figure to triple to 7.5 billion euros by 2025.

Climate change activist group Extinction Rebellion previously announced plans to start a blockade of the southern portion of the A10 ring road around Amsterdam to pressure ING to stop financing and servicing the fossil fuel sector. It was not immediately clear if the updated ING announcement will prompt the activist group to call off their protest.

The first blockade was set for December 30, and was planned to be staged near the unusual ING House, the former ING headquarters in the Zuidas. Extinction Rebellion implied that the protest action could continue on successive days, much like its climate protests on the A12 in The Hague.

Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said she was "really concerned" about the disruption the protest will cause, particularly as it will be staged near the VU Medical Center, a teaching hospital which handles emergencies and traumas. "There is contact with Extinction Rebellion, the VU hospital and ING. And let me make no mistake about it: the hospital in particular must remain easily accessible at all times," Halsema said during a City Council meeting last week.

She also pointed out that ING has not been present in the building for years, even though it owns the property. "So there is no direct relationship with the location and the purpose for which the demonstration is taking place."