SFDR: After the Council’s Missteps, MEPs Must Correct Course

Reclaim Finance criticizes the Council of the European Union for proposing that "transition" funds under the SFDR be available to oil and gas companies, provided they meet a 20% EU Taxonomy capex threshold and set Scope 1 and 2 targets. The author contends this position, influenced by lobbying from entities like TotalEnergies and the French government, ignores Scope 3 emissions and allows continued fossil fuel expansion. The document calls on the European Parliament to exclude companies developing new oil and gas projects from such funds to ensure the credibility of sustainable finance.

• The Council of the European Union's June 2026 position on the SFDR proposes allowing companies developing coal, oil, and gas projects to benefit from "transition" funds, reversing an earlier European Commission proposal to exclude them.
• The Council's proposed criteria for "transition" funds require that 20% of capital expenditures (capex) align with the EU Taxonomy and that companies adopt decarbonisation targets for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions.
• The proposed SFDR position is criticized for ignoring Scope 3 emissions, which represent 85% to 90% of the sector's emissions, and for lacking criteria to prevent the continued production and expansion of fossil fuels.
• The document attributes this policy shift to lobbying by the oil and gas industry, specifically citing TotalEnergies and the French government, noting that TotalEnergies has been convicted in France for misleading the public regarding its transition efforts.
• BloombergNEF analysis indicates that investments by major oil and gas companies in fossil fuel activities have returned to levels similar to those seen in 2015.

APA

Martin, L. (2026). SFDR: After the Council’s Missteps, MEPs Must Correct Course. Reclaim Finance. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/08/06/sfdr-after-the-councils-missteps-meps-must-correct-course/

Chicago

Martin, Léo. SFDR: After the Council’s Missteps, MEPs Must Correct Course. Reclaim Finance, 2026. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/08/06/sfdr-after-the-councils-missteps-meps-must-correct-course/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Martin |first1=Léo |title=SFDR: After the Council’s Missteps, MEPs Must Correct Course |publisher=Reclaim Finance |date=6 August 2026 |url=https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/08/06/sfdr-after-the-councils-missteps-meps-must-correct-course/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{martin2026sfdr, author = {Martin, Léo}, title = {{SFDR: After the Council’s Missteps, MEPs Must Correct Course}}, publisher = {Reclaim Finance}, year = {2026}, month = aug, url = {https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/08/06/sfdr-after-the-councils-missteps-meps-must-correct-course/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }