Climate protest will still block Amsterdam ring road despite ING pledge

Extinction Rebellion (XR) still plans to protest on the A10 highway in Amsterdam on 30 December against ING. The Dutch bank announced plans on Wednesday to stop financing new oil and gas projects by 2040 and to significantly increase loans for sustainable energy.

"It's good that ING is moving in the right direction, but we want an immediate halt to the financing of fossil fuels," a spokesperson for the activist group said in response to the announcement..

"With the current supply of oil and gas, we're already pushing global warming over 2 degrees. Therefore, existing oil and gas extraction projects must stop, let alone allow new projects in the coming years," the XR spokesperson explained

The fact that ING is "starting to feel the heat" is a "good sign" according to the activist group. However, for XR, the changes are happening much too slowly.

The protest on the A10 is planned near the former headquarters of ING, known for the building's shape as "the shoe," "the cash shoe," and "the clap skate." The bank moved out of the building nearly a decade ago, but XR still sees it as "a symbolic place." Protesting on the ring road is seen by the movement as an "escalation" after numerous protests in front of ING's current office in Amsterdam-Zuidoost.

Since ING is the “house bank” of the government, XR said it believes the issue concerns everyone. According to the spokesperson, the bank has had enough time to transition to more sustainable financing. "The Paris Agreement was signed eight years ago."

In the Paris Climate Agreement, world leaders committed to limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees, preferably to 1.5 degrees. At the latest climate summit in Dubai earlier this month, a provision was added for the first time stating that the world needs to transition away from fossil fuels towards more sustainable energy sources.