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Oil majors scale back green projects

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Sechin says investors losing interest in green energy

projects

By Olesya Astakhova and Yousef Saba

RAS AL KHAIMAH, United Arab Emirates, Dec 5 (Reuters) -

W eakening investor interest in clean energy is due to elusive

targets, high costs and lack of financing, according to Igor

Sechin, boss of Russia's biggest oil producer Rosneft

and a well-known green energy sceptic.

Russia, a leading producer of oil and natural gas, and China

have set goals to reach carbon neutrality by 2060, 10 years

later than most of the developed world.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has criticised the green

movement in Europe for capitalising on peoples' fears about

climate change, while questioning Germany's commitment to

phasing out coal.

Sechin has been sceptical about the green agenda, saying the

human contribution to the climate change has been overestimated.

"Over the past three years, Western stock markets'

enthusiasm for the renewable energy sector has largely faded.

Shares of companies producing clean fuels have fallen several

times over two years," Sechin told a conference in the United

Arab Emirates.

"The reasons for this attitude of investors are the

inability of green economy companies to achieve their goals on

time, including due to rising costs, delays in the issuance of

government loans and the lack of availability of new financing."

He cited global energy majors, such as Chevron Shell

and BP, which he said had "suspended alternative

fuel production projects".

"In particular, I am pleased to see the move away from

producing aviation fuel from used cooking oil," Sechin said with

a wry smile.

International oil majors have slowed investments in

renewables and low-carbon business as they face investor

pressure to boost returns and maintain large shareholder payouts

amid surging costs, supply chain issues and technical problems.