Fossil Fuel Subsidies Six Times More Than Renewable Energy

[cory777]

Source: Bloomberg

Fossil-fuel consumers worldwide received about six times more government subsidies than were given to the renewable-energy industry, according to the chief adviser to oil-importing nations.

State spending to cut retail prices of gasoline, coal and natural gas rose 36 percent to $409 billion as global energy costs increased, the Paris-based International Energy Agency said today in its World Energy Outlook. Aid for biofuels, wind power and solar energy, rose 10 percent to $66 billion.

While fossil fuels meet about 80 percent of world energy demand, its subsidies are “creating market distortions that encourage wasteful consumption,” the agency said. “The costs of subsidies to fossil fuels generally outweigh the benefits.”

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“Fossil-fuel subsidies as presently constituted tend to be regressive, disproportionately benefiting higher income groups that can afford higher levels of fuel consumption,” the report said. “Social welfare programs are a more effective and less distortionary way of helping the poor than energy subsidies.”

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-09/fossil-fuels-got-more-aid-than-clean-energy-iea.html

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[Autumn]

1. Yeah but they are getting a hell of a return on their investments

just look at their campaign chests.

[Gregorian]

2. Wow, this should be dated 1974. It's forty year old news.

But I guess some people didn't know it yet.

[Hotler]

3. Subsides go to energy companies. Money from the energy companies go to...

lobbyist. Money from the lobbyist goes to politicians. Republican politicians. Money from unions to Democratic politicians is bad. Money funneled through subsidies to Republican politicians is good.

[Roland99]

4. nothing left over to create jobs?

oh right...of course not. Silly me!

[JackRiddler]

5. Doesn't even begin to cover it, since it doesn't include the costs of the wars and MIC.