Nigeria—$160 million USD in 2017 Nigeria introduced petroleum subsidies in the 1960s with the aim of strengthening its local industry and improving product affordability and domestic consumption (Akinyemi and others, 2015). A report published by the Council on Foreign Relations estimates that the Federal Government of Nigeria spent about $20 billion on fuel subsidy in 2013 (CFR, 2016). The subsidy was removed in May 2016 amid falling crude oil price and an economic recession. However, more than $160 million was spent on subsidy in early 2017 as the national oil company absorbed costs due to an increase in crude oil...
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Mexico Subsidies
Mexico–220 billion Mexican pesos spent in subsidies in 2012, 1.4% of Mexico’s GDP For a long time, talks against fossil fuel subsidies in Mexico were common in political and academic circles, as well as in several newspapers. For many, subsidies symbolized a national budgetary expenditure that could be better used for other social programs (according to official sources, 220 billion Mexican pesos were spent in fossil fuel subsidies in 2012, 1.4% of Mexico’s GDP); and for a few, they also meant a continuous promotion of greenhouse-gas emission and atmospheric pollution. With the Energy Reform of 2012, a ray of hope...
Japan Subsidies
Japan—US$376 million With scarce and rapidly dwindling fossil fuel resources of its own, Japan engages in only a small amount of domestic oil and gas exploration. It relies heavily on fossil fuel imports to meet its energy needs, particularly since the accelerated phase-out of nuclear power following the Fukushima disaster in March 2011. So while Japan does not invest in domestic fossil fuel subsidies, it makes large investments in the development of oil and gas resources abroad (another form of fossil fuel subsidies). The Japanese government is actively involved in promoting oil, gas, and coal exploration and extraction overseas to...
Italy Subsidies
Italy—14.6 billion Euros in 2016 Italy directly and indirectly subsidized fossil fuels for 14.8 billion Euros in 2016, and 13.2 billion Euros in 2015. Subsidies are given to both production and consumption, which include exemption from paying excises, discounts and discounted financing. The top sector receiving subsidies is transportation. For the first time, the Italian government proposed an environmental component to evaluate and revise excise taxes as part of the 2012 tax reform. This was a major turning point in the country’s environmental policy because such a tool has enormous potential not only in reducing greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions as...
Indonesia Subsidies
Indonesia—8 billion USD in 2015/ 4 billion US in 2016 In 2015, $22.1 billion was initially allocated to fuel subsidies. In that year, major reforms in energy subsidies were implemented. Indonesia’s energy subsidies, especially for fossil fuel, have been a drain on the state budget. In 2013, 17% of government expenditure went to energy subsidies. Since becoming a net fossil fuel importing country in 2004, especially in oil, Indonesia’s energy subsides have become a burden on the country’s current account. In 2014 and 2015, major reforms were implemented to take advantage of lower gas prices. Domestic fuel prices were allowed...
India Subsidies
India—US$20.4 billion in 2016 The total value of energy subsidies from the central government of India, quantified in a latest inventory, has declined substantially between 2014 and 2016, from 35.8 billion USD to 20.4 billion USD. The same report points out that 18 subsidies are provided by the central government to both coal mining and coal consumption, predominantly in power generation. But financial information was not publicly available for six of these subsidies, which thus remained unquantified. According to the inventory covered in this report, total subsidies for the coal mining sector have decreased in India from 2.6 billion USD...
Germany Subsidies
Germany—Between 2014 and 2016, Germany provided fiscal support valued at €33.3 billion and public finance of €2.4 billion per year Germany is one of the countries in the EU region that reports its subsidies on fossil fuels on a biannual basis in a transparent manner (Gençsü and Zerzawy, 2017). Fossil fuel subsidies are financial support incentives in the production and consumption of carbon-intensive fuels such as coal, oil and gas (Bast and Doukas, 2016). Such financial investment discourages the production and consumption of renewable energies e.g. wind, solar and geothermal energy (Bast and Doukas, 2016). Germany provides subsidies to fossil...
China Subsidies
China—partial estimate 15.42 billion; complete estimate is not available The amount of subsidies that China provides to its fossil fuel industry has long remained a mystery. However, in September 2016, the US and China agreed upon a fossil fuel peer review process. The review was intended to stimulate a reform of such subsidies, which both countries saw as a needed step in combatting climate change. China released a list of its major subsidies as highlighted below: China’s Self Report identified nine fossil fuel subsidies in need of reform, amongst them, subsidies supporting extraction and refining, for electricity and heat generation,...
Canada Subsidies
Canada—46.4 billion per annum Canada paid $3.314 billion (on oil and gas subsidies) to its fossil fuel industry last year, and $2.9 billion in 2013. The amount changes yearly, $3.314 billion is an average based on 2013-2015 data. Subsidies are usually associated with production, field development, extraction, and exploration. However, the International Monetary Fund estimated Canada’s energy subsidies in 2011 as $26 billion, 2013 as $34 billion and 2015 as $46.4 billion to producers and as uncollected tax on externalized costs not accounted for such as air pollution, carbon emissions, transport fuels, and traffic congestion. Some agree with these unrecognized...
Brazil Subsidies
Brazil—$59.3 billion per annum from subsidies to private companies. Infrastructure incentive grants and state-owned energy company investments Subsidies to fossil fuels continue to be a major part of the developmental strategy in Brazil. In a 2015 study for the ODI and the G20 by Canadian researcher Ravenna Nuaimy-Barker, the authors found that Brazil´s subsidies to fossil fuels cover mostly oil and gas production and supply, amounting to an estimate R$ 11.6 billion (equivalent to USD 4.9 billion at the time). These include R&D investments, drilling and fuel transport, as well as power generation by SUDENE, a development agency for the...
Australia Subsidies
Australia—$11 billion per annum from tax-based subsidies There are a number of national tax-based subsidies that encourage fossil fuel production and consumption, adding up to a huge total of almost $11 billion each year. Using estimates from the federal government’s Tax Expenditure Statement and Treasury papers, the table below lists a range of measures within the Australian federal tax system that encourage the production and use of fossil fuels. This is Australian taxpayers’ money subsidizing fossil fuels. These figures do not include state-level subsidies, direct government handouts to coal, oil and gas projects, or public financing of international projects through...
Argentina Subsidies
Argentina—$13.6 billion in consumption subsidies in 2014 and additional (unknown) subsidies for new oil and gas exploration and development Argentina provided US$ 13.6 billion in fossil fuel subsidies in 2014, based on a comparison of the end-user prices paid by consumers to the full cost of supply. It has provided consumption subsidies for gas and electricity, but started cutting down gas subsidies in 2014, and ended electricity subsidies in 2016, to relieve budgetary pressures. At the same time, it has recently been investing heavily in exploration and the development of new reserves of oil and gas, including through tax breaks...