Case Studies

Featured Projects of Destruction

1) Chad-Cameroon Pipeline

Status: Under Construction U.S. ECA Funding Sources: Ex-Im and OPIC Cumulative Greenhouse Gas Emissions: The Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline will result in emissions of 445.9 million tons of CO2 over its anticipated life under the Pace University methodology. Oil will be shipped from the coast of Cameroon to international markets including the United States.

Background: This project will run from Chad through most of Cameroon and has a capacity of an estimated 225,000 barrels of oil per day.

On June 14, 2000, Ex-Im’s Board approved a $158.1 million loan guarantee in support of the ExxonMobil, Chevron investment in the Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline. Among the project developers named to receive the Ex-Im Bank guarantee: Halliburton subsidiary Brown & Root; Willbros Engineers Inc.; and IWL Communications.

On May 23, 2002, the Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) approved up to $250 million in OPIC political risk insurance for the drilling and repair of oil and gas wells in southwestern Chad by Pride International, Inc., headquartered in Houston.

Ex-Im and OPIC did not comply with NEPA before deciding to finance this project.

The Chad-Cameroon Extraction and Pipeline Project is currently under construction

In addition to the climate change impacts of this project a number of severe biodiversity and indigenous peoples impacts are also occurring including tropical forest destruction. Please contact Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace for more information. For more project information please see Friends of the Earth’s "Broken Promises" report at http://www.foei.org/ifi/brokenpromisessum.html. Also please see letters from non-governmental organizations to Ex-Im regarding project concerns: http://www.bankwatch.org/publications/policy_letters/2000/chadlettexim.html http://www.foe.org/international/eca/letter.html

2) Sakhalin II Oil & Gas Invesment- RUSSIAN FAR EAST

Status- Fossil fuel extraction underway US ECA Funding Sources: OPIC Cumulative Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Sakhalin II will result in 1129.9 tons of carbon dioxide emissions over its lifetime under the Pace University Methodology.

Background: According to Sakhalin Energy, Sakhalin II will deliver 45,000 bbl/day. Sakhalin II holds estimated reserves of 1 billion barrels of oil in the Piltun Astokhskoye field, and 14 trillion cubic feet of gas in the Lunskoye field.

In 1997, OPIC committed to a $116 million loan guaranty for the project. The $650 million first phase of Sakhalin II is being undertaken by Sakhalin Energy Investment Company, Ltd., in which Houston, Texas-based Marathon Oil Company was a 37.5 percent interest. Marathon was the stated client of OPIC, however after Marathon pulled out of the consortium, OPIC financing remained despite no U.S. companies in the consortium.

OPIC did not comply with NEPA before deciding to finance this project.

Sakhalin II is currently under operation.

In addition to the climate change impacts of this project a number of other environmental and social concerns are being brought about by Sakhalin II. Please see the following links for additional project information: www.seen.org and http://www.pacificenvironment.org/infocenter/Articles/Sakhalinecology.htm

Featured Projects Currently Under Consideration For OPIC or Ex-Im Approval

1) Camisea Fossil Fuel Drilling and Extraction- PERU

Status: Under Consideration for Financing PlusPetrol, Hunt Oil and other companies have begun preliminary seismic testing and routing but full construction is dependent on loans from Ex-Im and other financial institutions including the Inter-American Development Bank and Citicorp. U.S. ECA Funding Source: Ex-Im Bank (pending) Cumulative Greenhouse Gas Emissions: 133.2 million tons over its lifetime. This single project's emissions are greater than those of all of Central and South America combined (excluding Argentina and Brazil) in the year 2000, and more than the entire African continent combined (excluding South Africa) for the same year, according to the Institute for Policy Studies. One key market for this LNG will be California.

Ex-Im has indicated the view that NEPA is not applicable to this project.

Background: The Camisea natural gas project is the first major gas development in Peru. The project is located in one of the world's most ecologically prized rainforests in the remote Lower Urubamba Valley of the Peruvian Amazon. The Camisea region is described by scientists as "the last place on earth" to drill for fossil fuels. The gas development area known as Block 88 covers the legally titled territory of several voluntarily isolated and uncontacted indigenous peoples. The field contains an estimated 11 trillion cubic feet of gas and 600 million barrels of condensate. Half of this gas is anticipated to be shipped to the United States to supply West Coast energy markets.

A U.S. $2.7 billion project, Camisea involves the construction of gas wells, flow lines, a processing plant and two pipelines (running side by side) to the Peruvian coast. The project is expected to be on line by December 2003 and preliminary construction has begun. The upstream environmental license was awarded in December 2001 and the downstream environmental license was granted in early March 2002.

For more information on this project please see www.amazonwatch.org

2) Baku-Ceyhan Pipeline- CASPIAN REGION

Status: Currently under consideration for financing. U.S. ECA Funding Sources: OPIC and Ex-Im Cumulative Greenhouse Gas Emissions: 3.1 billion tons, based upon a planned pipeline capacity of 50 million tons per year, for 20 years per Pace University Methodology.

Background: BP/Amoco is the lead corporate applicant to Ex-Im and OPIC. Proven oil reserves in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are about 20 billion barrels, a little more than the North Sea and slightly less than the U.S. Potential exports from the Caspian region could increase by 1.8 billion bpd from the current 800 bpd by 2005, as the United States works closely with private companies and countries in the region to develop commercially viable export routes, such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyan (BTC) and Caspian Consortium oil pipelines. Moreover there is concern that exports could grow even more.

For more information on the project please visit: http://www.foe.org/international/eca/top5.htmlhttp://www.isar.org/isar/caspian/info.html