NGOs accuse Switzerland of backing gas plants abroad

Switzerland criticised for supporting gas plants abroad Keystone-SDA

Around 20 NGOs, including WWF, Greenpeace, Amnesty International and Public Eye, have accused Switzerland of backing ten gas‑fired power plant projects abroad.

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They staged a protest on Wednesday outside the headquarters of the Swiss Export Risk Insurance (SERV) in Zurich.

In an open letter to Swiss President and Economics Minister Guy Parmelin, as well as to Energy Minister Albert Rösti, the 23 NGOs argue that Switzerland is breaching the commitments it made at the 2021 COP26 in Glasgow. There, Switzerland pledged to stop financing fossil‑fuel projects abroad.

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As of 2023, SERV has given provisional or full backing to ten gas‑fired power plants abroad, say the organisations. They estimate that these projects would produce almost 20 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent emissions a year, roughly half of Switzerland’s total annual emissions.

Reduced credibility

By backing the expansion of gas‑fired power, SERV is worsening the climate crisis, the NGOs argue. They say this support also undermines the credibility of Switzerland’s foreign, environmental and climate policy, and slows the shift to renewable energy.

The organisations are calling on the Swiss government, the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and SERV to halt these projects immediately and to provide full transparency on the data. They say that as an independent federal body, SERV should set an example and meet the Climate Act’s requirement of reaching net‑zero emissions by 2040.

OECD guidelines

Contacted by the Keystone‑SDA news agency, SERV said it complies with OECD guidelines, which it argues allow support for gas‑fired power plants “under certain conditions”. Such facilities “often remain important for energy production and economic development, particularly in low‑ and middle‑income countries”, the agency said.

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The agency added that it is currently providing insurance cover of CHF 713 million ($920 million) for three gas‑fired power stations, and has agreed in principle to support three more worth CHF 440 million. It confirmed that the projects concerned would generate almost 20 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent emissions a year.

Translated from Italian by AI/sp

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