BNP Paribas shuts out mining clients tied to metallurgical coal

BNP Paribas (EPA:BNPP), the euro zone’s biggest bank, said on Thursday that it no longer provided financing to projects dedicated to the extraction of metallurgical coal.

“This new commitment is part of BNP Paribas’ efforts to align its credit portfolio in the steel sector with its ‘Net Zero’ commitment,” the Paris-based lender said in a statement.

The so-called net zero commitment refers to pledges to cut financed carbon emissions to zero by 2050.

BNP listed targets earlier this year to cut carbon emissions financed across oil and gas, electricity generation, automotive, steel, aluminium and cement, it said.

The lender notably vowed to cut its credit exposure to oil and gas by 80% and 30% respectively by 2030, as compared to September 2022.

It also said in May it would no longer provide any financing dedicated to the development of new oil and gas fields.

Advocacy groups have urged BNP Paribas to speed up its withdrawal from fossil fuel financing, with some even suing the French bank in February.

“BNP Paribas recalls that since 2020 it has been committed to a path towards a complete exit from the financing of the entire value chain of companies linked to thermal coal by 2030 in Europe and in the OECD countries, and by 2040 in the rest of the world,” the bank said.

BNP’s statement on Thursday coincided with the publication of a report by non-governmental organisation Reclaim Finance on “Metallurgical Coal Financing”.

According to the report, the world’s biggest banks, including BNP, have provided $557 billion worth of financing to the 50 largest developers in the metallurgical coal sector since 2016.

BNP Paribas shuts out mining clients tied to metallurgical coal