Financing the Energy Transition: Are World Bank, IFC, and ADB Energy Supply Investments Supporting a Low-Carbon Future?

This research paper by the World Resources Institute assesses the alignment of energy supply investments from the World Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Asian Development Bank (ADB) with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global temperature rise to well below 2°C.

• The majority of energy supply projects analyzed are either aligned with a 2°C scenario or could become aligned if specific conditions are met. Conditional technologies represent the largest share of these investments by both project number and financial volume.
• Investments in electricity transmission and distribution (T&D) constitute the largest portion of recent and approved energy supply financing for the World Bank and ADB, accounting for approximately 50% of the financing volume and 40% of the number of projects for both institutions.
• While renewables projects outnumbered natural gas power generation projects in terms of both count and total finance volume, the authors warn that natural gas must displace coal rather than add to it to serve as a genuine 'bridge' fuel.
• The review identified 21 oil and gas production projects across the three MDBs, which are categorized as controversial due to high emissions and high lock-in risk. Large hydropower projects were the second most common controversial project type, though many involved refurbishing existing plants.
• The analysis was limited to direct infrastructure investments; the authors noted that current reporting and disclosure practices make it difficult to assess the climate alignment of indirect financing provided through funds and financial institutions.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Financing the Energy Transition: Are World Bank, IFC, and ADB Energy Supply Investments Supporting a Low-Carbon Future? https://www.wri.org/research/financing-energy-transition-are-world-bank-ifc-and-adb-energy-supply-investments

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Financing the Energy Transition: Are World Bank, IFC, and ADB Energy Supply Investments Supporting a Low-Carbon Future? n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/financing-energy-transition-are-world-bank-ifc-and-adb-energy-supply-investments.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Financing the Energy Transition: Are World Bank, IFC, and ADB Energy Supply Investments Supporting a Low-Carbon Future? |url=https://www.wri.org/research/financing-energy-transition-are-world-bank-ifc-and-adb-energy-supply-investments |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendfinancing, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Financing the Energy Transition: Are World Bank, IFC, and ADB Energy Supply Investments Supporting a Low-Carbon Future?}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/financing-energy-transition-are-world-bank-ifc-and-adb-energy-supply-investments}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }