25 Countries and 27 Subnational Jurisdictions Already have Fossil Fuel Production Restrictions—and Many Have Held Firm Through Recent Energy Shocks

Measures to restrict new fossil fuel production have been rising steadily worldwide, with adoption accelerating sharply over the last decade—signalling a broader shift in how governments are approaching the transition away from fossil fuels ahead of the Santa Marta Conference, according to a new database released by the International Institute for Sustainable Development.

The findings challenge a common assumption that supply-side climate policy is too fragile to survive moments of crisis. Even through the 2022–2023 energy crisis, many restrictions remained in place. At the same time, the database underscores that these policies remain contested: IISD identified 15 restrictions that were repealed or rolled back, sometimes after changes in government, energy security pressures, or legal disputes.

“Governments need to understand the full picture if they are to deliver lasting energy security,” said Paola Yanguas Parra, policy advisor at IISD. “Restrictions already exist across a wide range of legal and political contexts, and many have endured even during periods of energy insecurity and price volatility.”

The database identifies 58 active restrictions on fossil fuel production across 25 countries and 27 subnational jurisdictions. These include bans on new coal mining, moratoria on oil and gas licensing, and prohibitions on extraction methods such as fracking or on production in specific areas, including offshore and ecologically sensitive zones. Together, they provide policy-makers with a systematic, one-stop global overview of active, expired, and repealed measures.

At a moment when limits on fossil fuel expansion are again being tested—including in debates over the future of North Sea production in the United Kingdom and through the European Commission’s recent consultation on updating EU Arctic policy—the database offers governments concrete evidence that such measures are not only possible, but already in use.

“Today’s policy debates are a reminder that fossil fuel restrictions can come under renewed pressure very quickly,” said Natalie Jones, senior policy advisor at IISD. “But the evidence also shows that many governments have chosen not to give way to short-term pressure, and that stronger legal design can make these measures more durable.”

For governments, the policy lesson is practical as well as political. Restrictions that last tend to be better anchored in stronger legal and institutional frameworks—such as statutes, executive orders, regulations, or formal agreements—rather than simple policy statements. Measures are also often more durable when they are linked not only to climate goals, but also to ecological protection, water security, land-use priorities, Indigenous rights, and long-term economic risk management, including stranded asset risks.

As governments gather in Santa Marta to discuss how to operationalize a transition away from fossil fuels, IISD’s new database offers a timely resource for turning a broad political commitment into concrete policy action. It shows that production limits are already part of the real-world policy landscape, and that the challenge now is to design, defend, and strengthen them.

“Transitioning away from fossil fuels will require governments to manage not only demand, but also the expansion frontier of production,” said Paola Yanguas Parra. “This database helps show where that is already happening, what kinds of measures are being used, and what it takes to make them stick.”

Notes for Editors

You can access the database here.
You can find analysis of the latest global restrictions data here.

Media Contact

Mark Raven, Senior Communications Officer at IISD:  [email protected], +447841474125