Step Off the Gas

The report finds that international public finance for gas projects in low- and middle-income countries averaged nearly USD 16 billion per year from 2017 to 2019, which is four times the amount provided for wind or solar. It argues that the 'bridge fuel' concept is obsolete due to the urgency of the climate crisis, methane leakage, and the falling costs of renewables. The document recommends that international public finance institutions end all support for gas exploration, production, and long-lived infrastructure, instead scaling up finance for grid integration, technology transfer, and universal clean energy access. Case studies of Argentina, Egypt, and India illustrate risks such as high subsidies, dependence on volatile export markets, and the creation of redundant parallel infrastructures for gas and electric vehicles.

• International public finance for gas projects in low- and middle-income countries is significantly higher than for other energy sources, averaging nearly USD 16 billion annually between 2017 and 2019, which is four times the amount given to wind or solar.
• Multilateral development banks (MDBs) continued to prioritize gas during the COVID-19 pandemic, with gas representing over 75% of their support for fossil fuels in 2020.
• The 'bridge fuel' argument for natural gas is considered obsolete because of the urgent climate crisis, the rapid cost decline of wind, solar, and storage technologies, and the impact of methane leakage.
• Investing in gas infrastructure creates economic risks for Global South countries, including the potential for stranded assets, increased import dependence, and the 'presource curse', as seen in Mozambique through deepening debt and increased violence.
• Renewable energy is now cost-competitive with gas for most uses, including power generation, and is more effective for providing rural electrification and clean cooking than expanding gas connections.
• The report recommends that international public finance institutions cease all direct and indirect support for gas exploration, production, and long-lived infrastructure like pipelines and LNG terminals, shifting instead to clean energy finance.

APA

Muttitt, G., Sharma, S., Mostafa, M., Kühne, K., Doukas, A., Gerasimchuk, I., & Roth, J. (2021). Step Off the Gas. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-06/natural-gas-finance-clean-alternatives-global-south-summary-en.pdf

Chicago

Muttitt, Greg, Shruti Sharma, Mostafa Mostafa, Kjell Kühne, Alex Doukas, Ivetta Gerasimchuk, and Joachim Roth. Step Off the Gas. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2021. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-06/natural-gas-finance-clean-alternatives-global-south-summary-en.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{muttitt2021step, author = {Muttitt, Greg and Sharma, Shruti and Mostafa, Mostafa and Kühne, Kjell and Doukas, Alex and Gerasimchuk, Ivetta and Roth, Joachim}, title = {{Step Off the Gas}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-06/natural-gas-finance-clean-alternatives-global-south-summary-en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }