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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Do countries around the world subsidize fossil fuels?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
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YES

Countries in every region of the world subsidize fossil fuels.

According to the International Monetary Fund, global spending on fossil fuel subsidies amounted to $5.9 trillion in 2020—equivalent to 6.8% of global GDP. Explicit subsidies such as subsidizing producers and undercharging for supply costs accounted for approximately $500 billion of this. The rest is attributed to implicit subsidies such as undercharging for environmental costs and general consumption taxes.

In dollar amount, the U.S. ranked second in fossil fuel subsidies ($662 billion) behind China ($2.2 trillion). Australia, Venezuela and many countries in the Middle East and North Africa that have large domestic fossil fuel industries also have high rates of fossil fuel subsidization.

Leading international fora like the G7 and G20 groups of nations have called for ending inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies. Globally, subsidies have been declining in recent years, though they remain in place in various countries as a result of several factors, including lobbying and concerns about the potential impacts of removing subsidies on consumers, especially the poor.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
International Monetary Fund Still not getting energy prices right: A global and country update of fossil fuel subsidies
Allianz Abolishing fuel subsidies in a green and just transition
Nature Why fossil fuel subsidies are so hard to kill
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Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.