COP28: The 28th edition of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, or the 28th meeting of the Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), which started on November 30, 2023, in Dubai, is set to end on December 12, 2023. Over a period of 12 days, several major announcements from the operationalisation of the loss and damage fund, a pledge to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030, an allocation of funds to tackle methane, and other climate finance pledges were made. On December 11, 2023, the UNFCCC released an updated version of the Global Stocktake text.
The text called for the reduction of fossil fuel consumption and production by 2050, but did not directly refer to a ‘phase-out’ of fossil fuels. Several climate activists have claimed that this is a regression from previous versions, and that the commitment to reduce fossil fuel consumption and production, without any mention of phase-out, is vague.
The following are the key events that have happened at COP28.
COP28 Day 12: December 12, 2023
COP28 is set to run into overtime as negotiators are awaiting a new draft deal that mentions a phase-out of fossil fuels.
Over 100 countries have agreed to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030, but there are elements that need to be solved. These include leases and grid connections, Anders Opedal, CEO of Norway’s Equinor, a major renewable energy developer, said, Reuters reported.
Not only do investment problems persist, but there is also a shortage of supplies from wind turbines and transformers to labour. Also, it takes years to get permits to start energy projects.
On December 12, the International Water Sustainability Coalition, a joint initiative of Mumbai-based AquaKraft Group Ventures, Leo Burnett India, an advertising agency, and UAE-based Quazar Investments, was launched. The aim of the coalition is to address the growing need of water sustainability and water security in the world.
COP28 Day 11: December 11, 2023
The UNFCCC released the second version of the Global Stocktake text, which mentions that Parties recognise the need for deep, rapid, and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
The text urges Parties to take actions such as tripling renewable energy capacity globally and doubling the global average annual rate of energy efficiency improvements by 2030, rapidly phasing down unabated coal, imposing limitations on permitting new and unabated coal power generation, accelerating efforts towards net zero emissions energy systems, utilising zero and low-carbon fuels by mid-century, accelerating zero and low emissions technologies such as renewable energy (nuclear energy), abatement and removal technologies, implementing carbon capture and storage, enhancing low-carbon hydrogen production, and enhancing efforts towards substituting unabated fossil fuels in energy systems.
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The draft text also calls upon Parties to take actions towards reducing both consumption and production of fossil fuels in a just, orderly, and equitable manner to achieve net zero by, before, or around 2050, substantially reducing non-carbon dioxide emissions, in particular methane, globally by 2030, accelerating emissions reductions from road transport through a range of pathways, such as the development of infrastructure and rapid deployment of zero- and low-emission vehicles, and phasing-out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption and do not address energy poverty or just transitions.
Top Arab energy ministers of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), a permanent, Intergovernmental organisation created by Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela, whose objective is to coordinate and unify petroleum policies among Member Countries, arrived in Doha on December 11 for the 12th Arab Energy Conference.
There are disagreements between countries at COP28 over a possible agreement to phase-out fossil fuels.
In a letter dated December 6, 2023, OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais urged OPEC Members to reject a COP28 deal that targets fossil fuels rather than emissions, Reuters reported.
Currently, OPEC has 13 Member Countries. These are Algeria, Angola, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.
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On the 11th day of COP28, Norway announced that the country will donate an additional $50 million to Brazil’s Amazon Fund to promote conservation of the Amazon Rainforest. Former President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro had frozen the fund in 2019, and this marks Norway’s first new donation since then.
For three years in a row, Afghanistan, which is affected by droughts and floods, has been left out of negotiations at the UN Climate Summit, and humanitarians are protesting against this.
Afghanistan is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change.
Kuwait’s Oil Minister Saad Al Barrak said in statements to Kuwait’s state news agency (KUNA) on December 11 that the country has refused to include any call for the phase-out of fossil fuel consumption and production in the COP28 final climate deal, news agency Reuters reported.
But the minister stated that Kuwait deeply believes in the need to cut greenhouse gas emissions to protect the environment, and that the goal could be achieved through the introduction of new technical and control solutions. He said that ditching fossil fuels would undoubtedly, gravely impact the global economy and create enormous problems for the energy sector and the development process.
UN climate chief Simon Stiell called upon countries to come together to reach a final deal that would prioritise an end to fossil fuels, and said that each step back from the highest ambition will cost countless millions of lives.
Germany’s economy minister Robert Habeck said on December 11 that the German government plans to help Germany-based steelmaker Stahl-Holding-Saar in its transformation towards greener production with 2.6 billion euros, Reuters reported.
Habeck emphasised the importance of helping the steel industry make reforms in its production in line with climate goals.
UN Secretary-General Antònio Guterres said that nations should reach an agreement on phasing-out fossil fuels because this is the key to the success of COP28.
COP28 Day 10: December 10, 2023
The International Energy Agency (IEA) said on December 10 that the new pledges announced at COP28, from tripling renewable energy by 2030 and doubling energy efficiency improvements to curbing methane emissions, are not enough to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Ahead of COP28, the IEA highlighted five critical areas to keep the 1.5-degree Celsius goal within reach.
These five central pillars for action between now and 2030 are tripling renewable power capacity, doubling the rate of energy efficiency improvements, commitments by the fossil fuel industry, and oil and gas companies to align activities with the Paris Agreement, beginning by cutting methane emissions from operations by 75 per cent, establishing large-scale financing mechanisms to triple clean energy investment in emerging and developing countries, and committing to measures that ensure an orderly decline in the use of fossil fuels, including an end to new approvals of unabated coal-fired power plants.
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Of these five criteria, pledges to triple Renewable power, double energy efficiency improvements, and cut methane emissions have been made. The Global Stocktake craft text urges Parties to impose limitations on permitting new and unabated coal power generation.
According to the IEA, the pledges are positive steps towards tackling the energy sector’s greenhouse gas emissions, but they would not be nearly enough to help the world reach international climate targets, especially the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
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As many as 130 countries have agreed to triple renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency improvement rates, and 50 oil and gas companies have agreed to reduce methane emissions by 2030.
A draft text mentioned that the Conference of Parties accepts the offer of the Government of Azerbaijan to host the 29th session of the Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC, or COP29, from November 11, 2024, to November 22, 2024.
On December 10, China’s top diplomat said that a final agreement on fossil fuels at COP28 was crucial, even if not perfect, Reuters reported. However, he did not comment on whether China would agree to eliminate coal, oil and gas entirely.
About 200 countries will have to reach an agreement to phase-out fossil fuels for COP28 to be a success, climate experts believe.
COP28 Day 9: December 9, 2023
On the ninth day of COP28, there were clashes among countries over a potential agreement to phase-out fossil fuels. This jeopardised attempts to deliver a first-ever commitment to end the use of oil and gas in over 30 years of climate talks.
There has been consistent pushback from OPEC to reject any deal that targets fossil fuels rather than emissions.
Saudi Arabia and Russia were among the countries who insisted that COP28 focus only on reducing climate pollution, and not on targeting fossil fuels, a Reuters report said.
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Since the OPEC is trying to stop a COP28 deal that agrees on phasing-out fossil fuels, the European Union’s climate chief said that this attempt is ‘unhelpful’ and ‘out of whack’.
Haitham Al Ghais also urged countries in the OPEC+ plus group, which includes OPEC members along with oil-producing countries, to reject a COP28 deal that targets fossil fuels.
Referring to the OPEC letter, EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said that it is not in tune with where the world stands in terms of the very dramatic situation of the climate.
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On December 9, Italian environmentalists, in protest at what they termed a lack of progress at COP28, turned Venice’s Grand Canal green using a due.
On December 9, a Dutch-led coalition of a dozen nations stated that they will publish an inventory of their own fossil fuel subsidies within a year. The aim behind this is to create a clear strategy to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies.
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Fossil fuel subsidies are employed to help protect consumers by keeping fuel prices low.
The coalition included Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, and Spain.
India’s Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said on December 11 that rich countries must lead global climate action, and demanded equity and justice in the climate negotiations.
US Senator Edward Markey said on December 9 that the push for more nuclear power to fight climate change must come with bolstered safeguards to fight proliferation of fissile nuclear materials.
COP28 Day 8: December 8, 2023
On the eighth day of COP28, Dubai’s media office said in a statement that the country plans to reduce carbon emissions by 50 per cent by 2030. The statement also said that Dubai has a clear roadmap for reaching its net-zero goal by 2050.
The United Kingdom’s Met Office said on December 8 that global average temperature could temporarily surpass the 1.5-degree Celsius threshold in 2024, which could be warmer than 2023, the warmest year on record.
The Met Office said that the average global temperature for 2024 is forecast to be between 1.34 degrees Celsius and 1.58 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
On December 8, environmental groups urged countries to halt support for expansion of global trade in liquefied natural gas.
The Agence Française de Développement (AFD), or the French Development Agency, said on December 8 that it intends to start inserting disaster relief clauses into its loans to vulnerable countries, Reuters reported.
Such clauses are called Climate Resilient Debt Clauses. With these, a country’s payments on their debt are suspended. Instead, they can use the money for quick recovery plans.
On December 8, Morocco joined an international campaign to phase-out coal. The country aims to secure more than half of its energy needs from renewable sources in the next seven years.
As many as 60 national governments are now a part of the Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA), and aim to stop coal-fired power generation.
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Funding for the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate, a joint effort by the US and the UAE, which was launched in 2021 at COP26 in Glasgow, has grown to over $17 billion. The aim of the effort is to advance climate-friendly farming globally.
On December 8, Singapore signed its first carbon credits implementation deal with Papua New Guinea.
COP28 Day 7: December 6, 2023
US investment firm KKR aims to raise up to $7 billion for its first global climate fund, Reuters reported, citing a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
A blog post by four economists published by the European Central Bank on December 6 said that Eurozone banks advocating climate change are the biggest lenders to polluting industries, and practise greenwashing, according to a Reuters report.
Akinwumi Adesina, the President of the African Development Bank, said on December 6 that African countries should be exempt from a plan by the EU to impose a carbon tax on some imports, Reuters reported. He stated that the cost of the levy to the continent is about $25 billion a year.
Lei Zhang, the CEO of Chinese wind turbine manufacturer Envision Energy, said on December 6 that the company believes it is easy to meet the international pledge made at COP28 to triple renewables by 2030, Reuters reported.
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US special climate envoy John Kerry on December 6 launched an international engagement plan involving 35 nations to boost nuclear fusion as part of the fight against climate change.
As part of the Dairy Methane Action Alliance, six of the world’s largest dairy companies — Danone, Bel Group, General Mills, Lactalis USA, Kraft Heinz, and Nestle — will start reporting their methane emissions by mid-2024, and will write methane action plans by the end of that year, Reuters reported.
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COP28 Day 6: December 5, 2023
As many as 63 countries joined a pledge on December 5 to cut cooling-related emissions. The pledge is called the Global Cooling Pledge. The US, Canada and Kenya were among the countries that signed the pledge.
This is the world’s first collective focus on climate-warming emissions from cooling.
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The pledge commits countries to reduce by 2050 their cooling-related emissions by at least 68 per cent compared to 2022 levels. They must also establish minimum energy performance standards by 2030.
On December 5, New Mexico announced a plan to divert wastewater from the oil and gas industry to water-intensive clean energy projects such as electric vehicles and solar manufacturing, a Reuters report said.
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New research from the Global Carbon Project science team found that fossil fuel emissions will reach record high levels in 2023. The emissions are projected to be 36.8 billion tonnes by the end of the year, which is 1.1 per cent higher than that in 2022..
Zambian power company Copperbelt Energy Corporation announced on December 5 that it will issue Zambia’s first green bond by the end of the year, and that the debt securities will be used to fund solar energy generation.
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As part of clean energy transition efforts, Russian metals giant Nornickel has collaborated with its Chinese partners to test new catalysts such as palladium for the hydrogen industry, Reuters reported.
Farhat Bengdara, the Chairman of Libya’s National Oil Corporation, said on December 5 that the firm hopes to achieve close to zero gas flaring by 2030. Gas flaring refers to the burning of natural gas associated with oil extraction.
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