On Wednesday 22nd of February 2023, members and supporters of the Stop EACOP coalition will hold actions in over ten countries on four continents, to call on Standard Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Standard Chartered banks to say no to the East African Crude Oil Pipeline. The actions will be held in parts of Uganda, London, Paris, New York, Tokyo, Johannesburg, Frankfurt, Brussels, Sendai, Nagoya, Fukuoka, Goma, Cape Town, Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Vancouver. Their goal: asking them to step away from the controversial project, like many others which have already done so.
Watch the call to action video
Context
350.org and members of the #StopEACOP movement, joined by dozens of collectives and NGOs around the world, are ramping up the pressure on Standard Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Standard Chartered. They demand the withdrawal of these banks from EACOP, emphasizing the project’s non-compliance with the Equator Principles (EP), to which these banks are signatories. Standard Bank (South Africa) and SMBC (Japan) are financial advisors to the project’s operators and are reportedly helping to arrange a multi-billion dollar loan to construct the EACOP. Standard Chartered (UK) has expressed interest in financing the project. To date, 24 banks have already refused to finance it. In addition, in November 2022, the insurer Britam Holdings decided not to support the EACOP project for non-compliance with the IFC Performance Standards, which is the standard that underpins the Equator Principles.
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Notes to editors
About the Equator Principles
The Equator Principles (EP) are a Financial industry benchmark for determining, assessing and managing environmental and social risk in projects. They are intended to serve as a common baseline and risk management framework for financial institutions.
A 2022 report from BankTrack, Africa Institute for Energy Governance and Inclusive Development International assessed EACOP and associated oil fields against internationally recognised environmental and human rights standards for financial institutions and found numerous violations, putting banks at risk if they sign on to support the project. The assessment suggests that the project does not comply with many of the criteria set forth in the Equator Principles and the Environmental and Social Performance Standards of the International Finance Corporation, two internationally recognized standards for responsible finance.
Yet, Standard Bank and SMBC, two official financial advisors of the EACOP project, and Standard Chartered, which has still not officially ruled out financing the project, are all signatories of the Equator Principles.
About the EACOP Project
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP,) is a planned 1,443-kilometer pipeline in Uganda and Tanzania. It threatens to displace thousands of families and farmers from their land, severely degrade critical water resources and wetlands in Uganda and Tanzania, and rip through numerous sensitive biodiversity hotspots. The oil transported via the pipeline would generate 34 million tons of carbon emissions each year. The principal backers of the multi-billion dollar project are the french oil major TotalEnergies and the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC).
On the 7th of February this year, Inclusive Development International and 10 human rights and environmental organisations in Uganda and Tanzania, which remain anonymous due to fear of reprisals, filed a complaint to the U.S. government alleging that New York-based insurance giant Marsh, a member of the Marsh McLennan group, violated international guidelines for responsible business conduct by serving as the insurance broker for the highly controversial East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).
The European Parliament has condemned EACOP for its associated human rights abuses in Uganda and Tanzania. The pipeline and associated Tilenga oil field are expected to displace almost 118,000 people in Uganda and Tanzania.
For interviews and additional information contact:
Abiud Onyach
Communications and Digital Associate, StopEACOP
Abiud.Onyach@350.org
+254727670279
Boitumelo Masipa, 350Africa.org
Tumi@350.org
+27814529096
Axelle Mounier
stopbombesclimatiques.presse@gmail.com
Ulysse Vassas
ulysse.vassas@proton.me
Phone:+33 674332322
Masayoshi Iyoda, Japan Team Leader, 350.org
Masayoshi.Iyoda@350.org
Phone number, +81-90-3557-3610