(London) Developing countries find themselves forced to produce ever more oil and gas to repay their loans to rich countries, says a study by a coalition of NGOs on Monday, calling for debt cancellations to break the “trap”. hydrocarbons.

Argentina, Uganda, Mozambique, Pakistan and others “could find themselves unable to transition away from fossil fuels and lead a transition to renewables unless this fossil fuel trap is corrected.” denounces the Debt Justice coalition of 35 NGOs, including ActionAid International and Friends of the Earth.

“High levels of debt are a significant barrier to getting out of hydrocarbons for many developing countries,” Tess Woolfenden, an official with Debt Justice, said in the statement.

“Many find themselves stuck in exploiting fossil fuels to generate revenue and pay off their debts, while at the same time fossil fuel projects often do not generate as much revenue as expected and can plunge countries further into indebtedness. This vicious cycle must stop,” she adds.

“For example, Argentina has committed to hydraulic fracturing in the Vaca Muerta hydrocarbon field in northern Patagonia” in order to repay its debt and get out of the economic crisis, with the support of the IMF, argues Debt Justice.

The Argentine government inaugurated in early July the first section of the Nestor Kirchner (GNK) gas pipeline built since the unconventional Vaca Muerta hydrocarbon megadeposit. It is the largest energy infrastructure project in the country for 40 years.

Debt Justice calls on developed countries to carry out “debt cancellations without economic conditions” to free up budgetary resources to invest in the sectors deemed most necessary, “including clean energy”.