Insurers call on G20 to phase out fossil fuel subsidies by 2020

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
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Insurance is one of the few industries left that still has a shred of credibility.


Insurers call on G20 to phase out fossil fuel subsidies by 2020

(Reuters) - Insurers with $1.2 trillion under management called on Tuesday for the Group of 20 to set a timetable to phase out subsidies for fossil fuels by 2020 when they meet at a summit in China this weekend.

Aviva, Aegon NV and MS Amlin said fossil fuel subsidies were at odds with commitments by G20 nations to combat global warming agreed by almost 200 countries last year at a Paris summit.

"Climate change in particular represents the mother of all risks," Aviva CEO Mark Wilson said in a statement.

The companies called on the G20 leaders, who meet in the Chinese city of Hangzhou on Sept. 4-5, to set "a clear timeline for the full and equitable phase-out by all G20 members of all fossil fuel subsidies by 2020".


A phase-out should start with the elimination of all subsidies for fossil fuel exploration and coal production, they said. Their statement was also signed by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and UK-based energy firm Open Energi.

G20 leaders have repeatedly promised to phase out fossil fuels, the main man-made source of greenhouse gases blamed for climate change, since a meeting in 2009 in Pittsburgh.

The British-based Overseas Development Institute think-tank estimated that average annual subsidies for fossil fuel production were $444 billion in 2013 and 2014, roughly four times the subsidies for renewable energy in 2013.

Last week, investors managing more than $13 trillion of assets urged the G20 to ratify the Paris climate deal by the end of 2016 to help avert droughts, floods, mudslides and rising sea levels.

No G20 nations have yet completed the ratification process, according to a U.N. tracker. China and the United States, the top two emitters, are widely expected to join up around the time of the G20 summit.

Insurers call on G20 to phase out fossil fuel subsidies by 2020 | Reuters
 

PoliticalNick

The Troll Bashing Troll
Mar 8, 2011
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If the insurance industry in thinks it can deny a claim or two by taking this position that's what they will do. Don't ever think any different. It is about denying claims and reducing payouts. Nothing more than profits in mind.
 

taxslave

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Nov 25, 2008
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Good thing Canada doesn't subsidize fossil fuels.How about we phase out subsidies for expensive, inefficient,unreliable wind and solar power instead?
 

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
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Insurance companies credible? LOL

Why is it funny?

They are the most reputable types of organizations in the world - especially after a catastrophic event occurs.

Good thing Canada doesn't subsidize fossil fuels.How about we phase out subsidies for expensive, inefficient,unreliable wind and solar power instead?

Not true.

Not only do we subsidize the oil industry, it just wouldn't be a profitable industry without government support.
 

PoliticalNick

The Troll Bashing Troll
Mar 8, 2011
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Why is it funny?

They are the most reputable types of organizations in the world - especially after a catastrophic event occurs.
Every post makes you look more and more like you have a single digit IQ

Not true.

Not only do we subsidize the oil industry, it just wouldn't be a profitable industry without government support.
There are some tax credits and some release of royalties but no real 'subsidies'. The wind/solar get huge subsidies and cash grants.
 

Jinentonix

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Sep 6, 2015
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Unfortunately it's more than subsidized which makes the subsidy even more egregious.

Wind and solar don't get enough, especially in Ontario.
What's egregious is paying 6X more than the market rate for hydro to whirlygig operators and almost 40X the market rate for hydro to solar power producers, even when neither is producing.
And here's a fun fact for you. You can't produce jack sh*t with the by-products of wind and solar because there are NO by-products of wind and solar. Other than chopped and fried birds.
Going to make surgical gloves from the by-products of wind and solar are you? How about toothbrushes, toothpaste, the tube the toothpaste comes in? How about Vaseline products, or dish soap or band-aids? How about the device you use to whine about the evils of oil that wouldn't exist without oil? Or the internet for that matter? These are all things you can't make with sunshine and unicorn farts. There's actually around 600 everyday products that can't be made by sunshine and unicorn farts and thousands more other products like various housing materials that require oil to manufacture.

Let me put this is very simple terms that even you should be able to comprehend. Oil doesn't just run the economy. It isn't merely a part of the economy, it IS the economy. Look at the US. It's economy is picking up as domestic oil production increases. Ours is falling apart while we chase idiotic green dreams, completely oblivious to the fact that almost all the European countries who went all out on "green" energy have backed right the f*ck down from it. Subsidies have been eliminated in many cases. They are not going to be subsidizing any new "green" energy projects in the near future either.
Meanwhile, the idiot Wynned sock is copying the same basic disastrous plan that the Euros have since bailed on.

But here's the problem. Wynne can play this stupid game because Ontario has significant nuclear and fairly decent hydroelectric capacities. Out of the roughly 14.5 million homes that Ontario provides power to, nuclear and hydroelectric account for over 11 million of those homes. https://www.cns-snc.ca/media/ontarioelectricity/ontarioelectricity.html

We can use Germany as a comparison, a country that relied a fair bit on nuclear power decided they needed to really shoot for green and shut down their coal/lignite fired plants. They had all kinds of green energy projects lined up. Then the Fukushima disaster struck and Germany in a knee-jerk reaction, decided they needed to start programming the shut down of their nuclear plants. As a result, the green energy projects have been shelved and Germany is going full bore on coal and lignite again. They realized that you CANNOT run a modern economy merely on sunshine and unicorn farts.

The reality is, wind and solar farms are utterly pointless in Ontario. Hell, hydro and nuclear alone account for 78% of Ontario's power generation. And since we know there's not 14.5 million homes in Ontario, we can assume quite a bit is being exported, at no profit to Ontario since it's exported at the basic market rate. That means even with shutting down the coal fired plants, Ontario had more than enough capacity to meet its needs while being 81% emissions free, and still have some left to export. The windmills and solar farms did not reduce and still have not reduced Ontario's GHG emissions from power generation by a single molecule of CO2.
 

PoliticalNick

The Troll Bashing Troll
Mar 8, 2011
7,940
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Edson, AB
What's egregious is paying 6X more than the market rate for hydro to whirlygig operators and almost 40X the market rate for hydro to solar power producers, even when neither is producing.
And here's a fun fact for you. You can't produce jack sh*t with the by-products of wind and solar because there are NO by-products of wind and solar. Other than chopped and fried birds.
Going to make surgical gloves from the by-products of wind and solar are you? How about toothbrushes, toothpaste, the tube the toothpaste comes in? How about Vaseline products, or dish soap or band-aids? How about the device you use to whine about the evils of oil that wouldn't exist without oil? Or the internet for that matter? These are all things you can't make with sunshine and unicorn farts. There's actually around 600 everyday products that can't be made by sunshine and unicorn farts and thousands more other products like various housing materials that require oil to manufacture.

Let me put this is very simple terms that even you should be able to comprehend. Oil doesn't just run the economy. It isn't merely a part of the economy, it IS the economy. Look at the US. It's economy is picking up as domestic oil production increases. Ours is falling apart while we chase idiotic green dreams, completely oblivious to the fact that almost all the European countries who went all out on "green" energy have backed right the f*ck down from it. Subsidies have been eliminated in many cases. They are not going to be subsidizing any new "green" energy projects in the near future either.
Meanwhile, the idiot Wynned sock is copying the same basic disastrous plan that the Euros have since bailed on.

But here's the problem. Wynne can play this stupid game because Ontario has significant nuclear and fairly decent hydroelectric capacities. Out of the roughly 14.5 million homes that Ontario provides power to, nuclear and hydroelectric account for over 11 million of those homes. https://www.cns-snc.ca/media/ontarioelectricity/ontarioelectricity.html

We can use Germany as a comparison, a country that relied a fair bit on nuclear power decided they needed to really shoot for green and shut down their coal/lignite fired plants. They had all kinds of green energy projects lined up. Then the Fukushima disaster struck and Germany in a knee-jerk reaction, decided they needed to start programming the shut down of their nuclear plants. As a result, the green energy projects have been shelved and Germany is going full bore on coal and lignite again. They realized that you CANNOT run a modern economy merely on sunshine and unicorn farts.

The reality is, wind and solar farms are utterly pointless in Ontario. Hell, hydro and nuclear alone account for 78% of Ontario's power generation. And since we know there's not 14.5 million homes in Ontario, we can assume quite a bit is being exported, at no profit to Ontario since it's exported at the basic market rate. That means even with shutting down the coal fired plants, Ontario had more than enough capacity to meet its needs while being 81% emissions free, and still have some left to export. The windmills and solar farms did not reduce and still have not reduced Ontario's GHG emissions from power generation by a single molecule of CO2.
Now don't be confusing Mentalfart with logic and facts. It's all about the feels and the kumbya moments. No place for facts and logic.
 

EagleSmack

Hall of Fame Member
Feb 16, 2005
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Look... Flossy is tired of being schooled in this forum. He's gone Troll full time... anyone can see that.
 

IdRatherBeSkiing

Satelitte Radio Addict
May 28, 2007
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Why is it funny?

They are the most reputable types of organizations in the world - especially after a catastrophic event occurs.


You have to be being sarcastic. They are very good at denying claims.

Unfortunately it's more than subsidized which makes the subsidy even more egregious.

Wind and solar don't get enough, especially in Ontario.


Wind and Solar are 100% subsidized. They are not profitable on their own, especially in Ontario.

Look... Flossy is tired of being schooled in this forum. He's gone Troll full time... anyone can see that.


I am afraid you are indeed correct. Either that or is out of purple ink.
 

PoliticalNick

The Troll Bashing Troll
Mar 8, 2011
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Edson, AB
You shouldn't be so salty you can't actually engage in meaningful conversation.

We can't have a meaningful conversation with someone who believes increasing the price of everything under the sun by 20% or more and adding another 10% to our taxes will magically reduce the median global temperature which, in factual reality, has already dropped by half a degree in the last 50 years.
 

darkbeaver

the universe is electric
Jan 26, 2006
41,035
201
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RR1 Distopia 666 Discordia
Unfortunately it's more than subsidized which makes the subsidy even more egregious.

Wind and solar don't get enough, especially in Ontario.

Wind and solar cannot compete with oil, ever. That entire wind and solar sector is a mess of junk. Why don't you read outside your box man? Both wind and solar are economic disasters.

We can't have a meaningful conversation with someone who believes increasing the price of everything under the sun by 20% or more and adding another 10% to our taxes will magically reduce the median global temperature which, in factual reality, has already dropped by half a degree in the last 50 years.

His problem may be an unhealthy appitite for propaganda.