Cloud hangs over climate finance

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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/developmental-issues/Cloud-hangs-over-climate-finance/articleshow/10261756.cms

PANAMA CITY: An impasse in global climate talks is casting a shadow on clean energy financing in the developing world, with growing doubts over a program that has funded billions of dollars in projects.

UN-led negotiations involving nearly 200 nations are struggling to come up with a framework after 2012, when wealthy countries' commitments to cut carbon emissions blamed for climate change run out under the landmark Kyoto Protocol.

A signature feature of Kyoto is the Clean Development Mechanism -- or CDM in the talks' jargon -- which allows countries to meet their obligations by financing environmentally friendly projects in the developing world.

The European Union has supported a new round of Kyoto commitments after 2012 to avoid any gap, but other advanced economies have balked. Ramping up the pressure, developing countries have warned they would not support a continuation of the CDM without further commitments by rich nations.