The COP28 President-Designate, Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, called on the oil and gas industry to rally around ambitious decarbonization targets, as part of the COP28 Presidency’s Action Agenda to fast-track the energy transition and keep 1.5C within reach.
Specifically, during the beginning of the 2023 Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference (ADIPEC), Dr. Al Jaber reiterated calls on industry to step up, align around net zero by or before 2050, zero-out methane emissions, and eliminate routine flaring by 2030. Describing the necessary actions, Dr. Al Jaber highlighted three key areas that he was prioritizing, including:
- Curbing emissions from the production of energy
- Scaling up renewables
- Decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors, such as steel cement, aluminum and heavy transportation
What is COP28?
The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are yearly conferences held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). They serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC parties (Conference of the Parties, COP) to negotiate and agree action on how to tackle climate change, limit emissions and halt global warming. The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are the world’s highest decision-making body on climate issues and one of the largest international meetings in the world.
The host of the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, or Conference of the Parties (COP28) will be the UAE (United Arab Emirates), from 30 November to 12 December 2023 at Expo City, Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. . COP28 UAE will provide a milestone opportunity for the world to come together, course correct, and drive progress to keep 1.5C within reach – so we can meet the goals and ambitions of the Paris Agreement.
He also welcomed recent progress and action from over 20 oil and gas companies, including both international and national oil companies (IOCs and NOCs), which have positively answered the call to take the challenging but achievable steps to curb emissions from the production of energy.
This took time, effort and many months of hard work, negotiation and collaboration. We are counting on many more to come onboard and start taking action to decarbonize further and faster. I urge everyone to make this commitment at COP28, a COP where I am calling on everyone to set the highest ambitions, follow through with practical actions and deliver real results.
… said Dr. Al Jaber
Dr. Al Jaber also noted the critical role that the oil and gas industry has in scaling up renewables, highlighting how they represent an opportunity for this industry to diversify and future proof its business models.
Everyone must be around the table to make the transformational progress needed, and especially the energy industry. No other industry has the same ability to manage complexity, depth of knowledge, engineering talent, technology, capital, and scale that is needed for the task at hand.
… highlighted the COP28 President-Designate
The COP28 President-Designate’s call to implement a comprehensive energy transition plan is part of the COP28 Presidency’s Action Agenda which is based on four key pillars. These pillars include fast-tracking a just and orderly energy transition, fixing climate finance, focusing on people, lives and livelihoods, and underpinning everything with full inclusivity.
You can watch the presidents full speech in the video below:
