European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde has called on Europe to increase climate-related insurance coverage, invest in power infrastructure and support firms in generating their own electricity. Speaking ahead of the COP31 summit, Lagarde said last summer’s extreme weather exposed risks in Europe’s economy and energy system that are likely to worsen as the climate warms.
Lagarde urged the European Union to develop a public-private reinsurance scheme for climate disasters, noting that only a quarter of catastrophe losses in Europe have typically been insured. She cited industry research showing that each euro spent upgrading the grid saves more than €2 in system costs, and argued for faster grid connections for companies with their own power generation and storage.
Lagarde, who will step down on 7 February, said most of the investment needed would have to come from the private sector. She did not mention any ECB role in direct financing. The EU plans to use the COP31 summit to seek agreement on a package of measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to an internal document seen by Reuters.
