Ireland to fully divest from fossil fuels;

Ireland becomes first country to announce divestment from fossil fuels

Ireland has become the world’s first country to announce its divestment of all public money from fossil fuels. Previously criticized for climate inaction, it will divest its €8.9bn worth of holdings in coal, oil, natural gas and peat within 5 years or sooner to help limit global warming.

The divestment strategy will also allow investors to fund Irish firms to move away from extraction and use of fossil fuels.

Nippon joins Dai-Ichi in exit from coal-fired power

Nippon Life Insurance Co. will stop all investments in new coal-fired thermal power projects – both within Japan and abroad. The move is significant as Japanese financial institutions have been major funders for new thermal capacity across the world.

One such financier – Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank – has also agreed “as a basic rule” to halt its financing for thermal power. Nippon is Japan’s largest insurance firm and joins Dai-Ichi in pulling the plug on funding thermal power projects.

Baltimore sues Big Oil despite New York’s suit being thrown out

Baltimore (Maryland) has filed a lawsuit against 26 oil & gas majors for knowingly contributing to climate change. The city has been battered by two, 1000-year storms since 2016 and its coastline is highly vulnerable to a rise in sea levels.

The lawsuit may meet stiff resistance in court after New York city’s suit on Big Oil on similar charges was thrown out by a district judge. The judge ruled that addressing the issue required policy changes at a federal level. Similar suits by San Francisco and Oakland have also been dismissed.

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