COP28 softens language of abandonment of fossil fuels – 12/10/2023 – Environment

Less than two days before closing, COP28 seeks a consensus among countries on the gradual abandonment of fossil fuels. The UN meeting on climate change takes place in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, and is expected to end this Tuesday (12).

As negotiations slowed down as the end of the event approached, some countries began to speak out more emphatically against the proposal under discussion.

According to a negotiator from a developed country, the draft presented last Friday (8) — which presented options on abandoning or reducing fossil fuels — had practically no participation from nations that oppose these measures, as they they had not yet taken a position in the discussions.

In the opinion of observers of the negotiations, the leak on Friday of the OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) letter may have been a way for Saudi Arabia to send a message to the host of the conference that it wants to be heard more in the talks.

The OPEC text advocated that the summit’s final document reject proposals that mentioned the elimination of the use of fossil fuels. Instead, it supported mentions of carbon emissions reductions.

The president of COP28, Sultan Al Jaber, has stated throughout the negotiations that progress in the commitment to abandon or reduce fossil fuels is a condition for the conference to be perceived as a success. He is also president of state oil company Adnoc, which has led NGOs and activists to accuse him of a conflict of interest.

Despite the search for a positive signal that COP28 will point the world towards an energy transition from fossil sources to renewable sources, the tendency in this final phase of negotiations is for the commitment to take on weaker language than those considered in the last draft, which spoke of in reducing and eliminating fossils.

Among the options that negotiators propose as a way to convince the most oil-dependent economies to accept the text is a proposal that suggests a transition or shift in investments, with an increase in renewables while reducing fossil sources.

Another silence that stood out in the weekend’s negotiations came from the largest oil producer in the last year, the United States. The country did not speak out at the meeting of ministers promoted this Sunday afternoon (10) by the COP28 presidency.

Behind the scenes, however, the Americans would have tried to propose that the text being negotiated exchanged the elimination of fossil fuels for the elimination of emissions from these fuels — in line with OPEC’s proposal.

The USA is not part of the organization, as is Brazil. President Lula (PT), however, accepted an invitation to join OPEC+, which brings together producing countries that are allies of the group.

Observers of the negotiations hope that the language used in a joint statement by the US and China in November will serve as a parameter for what the two countries are willing to accept in the final text of COP28.

In the declaration, Washington and Beijing state their intention to accelerate the deployment of renewables and the replacement of gas, oil and coal, anticipating the reduction of emissions in the electricity sector (which leaves the transport sector out).

While China has signaled its willingness to negotiate an exit from fossil fuels, India has refused any commitment to abandon its use — the country is highly dependent on coal.

As president of Basic (which also brings together China, India and South Africa), Brazil tries to find a language that appeals to Indians.

For Brazilians, the most important condition for approving an abandonment of fossil fuels is the creation of a calendar in which developed countries take the lead. A new draft of the text is expected this Monday morning (11).

The draft on the global climate adaptation objective was circulated this Sunday (10). In it, countries seek to define sectoral goals and a structure to assess needs and projects that can be submitted for international financing. The dispute is well divided between the developed bloc (responsible for financing climate adaptation actions in the world) and developing countries.

An urgent agenda for the countries most vulnerable to the climate, such as small islands, adaptation was blocked throughout the first week of the conference and its draft was the last to be presented, which caused fears that the agenda would become a hostage in the negotiations of other demands.

A group of developing countries, including Arab nations, have criticized the adaptation agenda. They defend the principle of “differentiated responsibilities”, set out in the UN climate convention.

According to this idea, it is up to developed countries, historically responsible for the emissions that cause the climate crisis, to lead the agenda and finance the efforts of developing nations.

The developed bloc argues that adaptation will also require resources in its countries and refuses to discuss a number as a target for financing climate adaptation.

Reporter Ana Carolina Amaral traveled at the invitation of Avaaz, Instituto Arapyaú and Internews.