The COFFIS Observatory, a new initiative by Stop Fossil Subsidies, has published the first in-depth review of fossil fuel subsidy inventories submitted by members of the Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives Including Subsidies (COFFIS).
Despite the ambition declared at its launch during COP28, only three out of the 12 original COFFIS members have met the basic requirement to submit a fossil fuel subsidy inventory. The remaining members have either failed to submit altogether or submitted documents that fall far short of what’s needed to achieve the coalition’s stated goals.
COFFIS was launched to restore credibility after over 15 years of global failure to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies. Yet, 18 months in, its implementation record is underwhelming — raising serious questions about the coalition’s future and the quality of the forthcoming phase-out plans due in November 2025.
Two countries — Austria and France — submitted documents with no actual fossil fuel subsidy data, opting instead to showcase green budgeting efforts. This fails to meet the fundamental objective of COFFIS and sets a dangerous precedent.
“Recycling existing reports with only a tangential connection to fossil subsidies is not leadership — it’s evasion,” a spokesperson of the Observatory warned.
Without swift course correction, COFFIS risks repeating the same failures it was created to overcome. “The time for excuses is over. The credibility of COFFIS and the hope of meaningful fossil subsidy reform depends on bold and immediate action.”
“However, high-quality inventory submissions from countries such as Ireland, Belgium, and the Netherlands, show what countries can achieve when taking the issue seriously.”
The publication of the analysis coincides with the launch of the COFFIS Observatory. “There is a severe lack of scrutiny of COFFIS members’ activities. With this new initiative we want to increase transparency where there’s currently very little.”
Using a methodology that rewards transparency and penalizes missing content, countries were scored between -20 and +30. The results show a stark divide in commitment levels:
- High scorers:
- Ireland: 29/30
- Belgium: 17/30
- Netherlands: 13/30
- Minimal transparency:
- Switzerland: 2/30
- Inventory submitted, but without actual fossil subsidy data:
- Austria: -10/30
- France: -10/30
- No submission at all (score 0):
- Antigua and Barbuda, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg, Spain
The full country-by-country breakdown and the full set of recommendations are available at: https://stopfossilsubsidies.eu/coffis-observatory/
The COFFIS Observatory is an independent civil society initiative. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or formally connected to the COFFIS coalition. Any views, analyses, or materials published by the Observatory are its sole responsibility.
