RWE’s AGM: coal phase-out cannot be put off any longer

Reclaim Finance criticizes RWE for maintaining a coal phase-out target of 2038, which it claims is eight years behind scientific recommendations. The organization highlights RWE's role as one of Europe's largest CO2 emitters, its reliance on fossil gas as a bridge fuel, and its efforts to obtain €2.6 billion in compensation from the German government. It specifically calls on major shareholders, including Crédit Agricole/Amundi, Société Générale, and BNP Paribas, to use the upcoming AGM to sanction the company's lack of a coherent transition strategy.

• RWE is a major European emitter, owning three of the top ten CO2-emitting assets in the EU Emissions Trading System. In 2021, its coal-fired power plant in Niederaußem saw a 36% increase in emissions compared to 2020.
• RWE's plan to exit coal by 2038 is described as unsatisfactory, as it lags eight years behind scientific recommendations. Furthermore, the company has expressed readiness to reactivate 3.5GW of coal capacity to mitigate potential cuts in Russian gas imports.
• The company is accused of stalling the coal exit through lobbying and legal action, including seeking €2.6 billion in compensation from the German government and filing a lawsuit against the Dutch government regarding its 2030 coal phase-out date.
• RWE is increasingly dependent on fossil gas, which accounted for 33% of its electricity production in 2021, and intends to expand gas capacities until 2035 despite IPCC warnings that new fossil fuel infrastructure locks in carbon emissions.
• Major financial institutions continue to support RWE despite climate pledges. Amundi held $782 million of RWE shares in November 2021, and the document argues that Amundi's coal production threshold of 100 Mt/year is too broad to exclude RWE, which produces 51 Mt/year.

APA

admin (2022). RWE’s AGM: coal phase-out cannot be put off any longer. Reclaim Finance. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2022/04/27/rwes-agm-coal-phase-out-cannot-be-put-off-any-longer/

Chicago

admin. RWE’s AGM: coal phase-out cannot be put off any longer. Reclaim Finance, 2022. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2022/04/27/rwes-agm-coal-phase-out-cannot-be-put-off-any-longer/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=admin |title=RWE’s AGM: coal phase-out cannot be put off any longer |publisher=Reclaim Finance |date=27 April 2022 |url=https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2022/04/27/rwes-agm-coal-phase-out-cannot-be-put-off-any-longer/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{admin2022rwes, author = {admin}, title = {{RWE’s AGM: coal phase-out cannot be put off any longer}}, publisher = {Reclaim Finance}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2022/04/27/rwes-agm-coal-phase-out-cannot-be-put-off-any-longer/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }