Redesigning the Energy Charter Treaty to Advance the Low-Carbon Transition

The document proposes overhauling the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) to ensure it supports rather than hinders the low-carbon transition. It suggests three building blocks for a revised ECT: encouraging low-carbon energy investments, discouraging carbon-intensive energy investments, and ensuring a just transition to low-carbon economies and societies.

• The Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) is unique among investment treaties because it focuses exclusively on the energy sector, covering oil, gas, coal, wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources.
• There is a conflict between the current ECT regime and the Paris Agreement under the UNFCCC, necessitating a redesign of the treaty to ensure mutual supportiveness between economic and environmental goals.
• A revised ECT should be based on three primary building blocks: promoting low-carbon energy investments, deterring carbon-intensive energy investments, and facilitating a just transition to low-carbon societies.

APA

Bernasconi-Osterwalder, N., & Brauch, M. (2019). Redesigning the Energy Charter Treaty to Advance the Low-Carbon Transition. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/redesigning-energy-charter-treaty-advance-low-carbon-transition

Chicago

Bernasconi-Osterwalder, N., and M.D. Brauch. Redesigning the Energy Charter Treaty to Advance the Low-Carbon Transition. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2019. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/redesigning-energy-charter-treaty-advance-low-carbon-transition.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bernasconi-Osterwalder |first1=N. |last2=Brauch |first2=M.D. |title=Redesigning the Energy Charter Treaty to Advance the Low-Carbon Transition |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=3 September 2019 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/redesigning-energy-charter-treaty-advance-low-carbon-transition |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bernasconiosterwalder2019redesigning, author = {Bernasconi-Osterwalder, N. and Brauch, M.D.}, title = {{Redesigning the Energy Charter Treaty to Advance the Low-Carbon Transition}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2019}, month = sep, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/redesigning-energy-charter-treaty-advance-low-carbon-transition}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }