Mon Oct 27 12:50:39 UTC 2025: News Article:

New Fossil Fuel Projects Threaten Climate Goals, Exceeding Carbon Budget by 11-Fold

[City, Date] – A new report by environmental NGOs reveals that 28 massive fossil fuel extraction projects, dubbed “carbon bombs,” have been launched worldwide since 2021, despite global commitments to phase out fossil fuels and limit global warming. These projects, defined as those capable of generating over a billion tonnes of CO2 during their lifespan, are projected to release emissions that vastly exceed the remaining global “carbon budget” needed to meet the Paris Agreement’s target of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The report, published by Lingo, Data for Good, Reclaim Finance, and Eclaircies, highlights the ongoing disconnect between climate pledges and actual investment in fossil fuel infrastructure. While countries agreed to begin phasing out fossil fuels at COP28, major global banks have poured over $1.6 trillion into companies involved in these carbon bomb projects between 2021 and 2024. Barclays Bank emerges as a leading financier, providing $33.7 billion to 62 companies, including industry giants like Eni, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies.

The geographic distribution of these projects reveals China as the leading contributor (43%), followed by Russia (9%) and the United States (5%). Western oil majors hold the most of these projects, although Saudi Arabia’s Aramco and China’s CHN Energy are projected to produce the highest emissions.

In addition to these massive projects, the report identifies over 2,300 smaller extraction initiatives, approved or launched since 2021, each with the potential to emit more than five million tonnes of CO2.

Combined, the projected CO2 emissions from all these new projects are a staggering eleven times greater than the remaining carbon budget calculated to keep global warming within the 1.5C threshold. This stark finding underscores the urgent need for a drastic shift in investment and energy policy to avoid catastrophic climate consequences.

“Major global banks are exacerbating climate change and future emissions by continuing to give carte blanche to these fossil fuel companies that are destroying the planet,” said Louis-Maxence Delaporte, energy research manager at Reclaim Finance. The report’s findings serve as a critical warning, demanding immediate action to curtail fossil fuel expansion and accelerate the transition to cleaner energy sources.

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