In his recent speech, UN Secretary-General António Guterres criticized the oil and gas industry’s promotion of carbon capture technology as a means of justifying fossil fuel expansion. He referred to these proposals as “efforts to become more efficient planet wreckers”, hinting at a critique of the UAE hosts of COP28. Guterres argued that the industry’s focus on capturing emissions rather than transitioning away from fossil fuel production was undermining the climate agenda.
Sultan al-Jaber, the president-designate of UAE COP28 and head of the state oil company Adnoc, has consistently supported the industry’s viewpoint, emphasizing the need to control emissions. However, Guterres firmly stated that the problem lies not only in fossil fuel emissions but in fossil fuels themselves. He expressed concern that many are relying on wishful thinking, unproven technologies, and silver bullet solutions, putting the planet at risk.
Guterres highlighted the disparity in investment between oil and gas drilling/exploration and clean energy/carbon capture. He pointed out that for every dollar spent on oil and gas activities, only 4c is allocated to clean energy and carbon capture combined. He described trading the future for short-term gain as immoral.
The UN Secretary-General clarified that his comments were not targeting any specific individual but were directed at those with the power to bring about change. He urged fossil fuel companies to transition their entire operations to renewable energy sources.
These remarks come at a critical time, just five months before the petrostate UAE is set to host COP28 in Dubai, led by Jaber. Over 130 US lawmakers and members of the European Parliament have already expressed concerns about Jaber’s role due to his position as head of the state oil company, believing it may undermine negotiations.
The halfway point to COP28 was recently marked in Bonn, Germany, with the conclusion of discussions on the agenda. After initial deadlock, countries finally reached an agreement on which issues would be carried over for consideration at COP28. Notably, the EU’s proposal to address emissions reduction work did not make the final agenda due to opposition from oil and gas producing nations like Saudi Arabia. However, the discussions on this matter were recorded in a “note” to inform future talks.
The Pakistani co-chair of the Bonn talks, Nabeel Munir, expressed frustration at the slow progress and warned negotiators that their efforts would be wasted without an officially adopted agenda. He urged them to wake up to the unprecedented events happening around the world, referring to his own country’s devastating floods.
One positive outcome from Bonn was the UN’s decision to require all participants in future climate COPs to disclose their affiliations, responding to calls for greater transparency in negotiations to minimize fossil fuel industry lobbying.
Experts view progress at Bonn as a crucial milestone before COP28. Disappointment was expressed over the lack of a clear vision for the summit from UAE’s presidency. Although Jaber acknowledged the inevitability of reducing fossil fuel usage, a specific timeline or plan for ending new oil and gas production was not provided.
The key question now revolves around whether the COP28 presidency will allow countries to openly and transparently discuss including a commitment to phase out fossil fuels in the final decision text. Alden Meyer from the think-tank E3G underscores the importance of this discussion.
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