The Dutch banking group ING Groep NV is further restricting access to financing for some oil and gas companies and from 2026 it could abandon customers who do not align with its “net zero” climate goals, ING’s CEO Steven van Rijswijk told Reuters, according to Agerpres.

European banks are at the forefront of climate change policies, while some major Wall Street lenders have been accused of undercutting their climate commitments.

Given that last year ING was the largest financier in the Netherlands for oil and gas, with loans of 17.1 billion euros, the bank’s decision to finance the sector was criticized by NGOs.

His new policy, announced on Wednesday, builds on commitments from 2023 to stop funding oil and gas exploration and production activities by 2040.

ING will no longer grant financing to oil and gas exploration and production companies that develop new deposits, except for ecological projects. Also, the lender will no longer finance projects for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals after 2025.

“If you are a company dedicated only to the exploration and production of oil and gas, the development of fields and the extraction of oil and gas, and if you continue to open new fields, we will stop your funding,” Steven van Rijswijk told Reuters.

He explained that the change in ING’s oil and gas policy could affect 25 ING clients, with loans of approximately one billion euros, which represents only a small part of the bank’s loan portfolio of 656 billion euros.