Canadian politicians and civil society groups are condemning the United Arab Emirates' decision to have oil company CEOs lead this year's international climate negotiations.
The UAE hosts the annual UN climate talks and it was recently announced that Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, will chair this key forum for climate change negotiations.
Canadian climate monitors say the country's oil tycoons, who invest heavily in fossil fuel production, have announced that the country's oil tycoon, who invests heavily in fossil fuel production, is planning a conference where countries gather to chart a path to reducing global warming pollution for the world's benefit. I was shocked to be chosen as the organizer.
As CEO, Al Jaber is responsible for maximizing profits from the state-owned company's oil and gas extraction, said Katherine Abreu, founder of climate change advocacy group Destination Zero. Canadian National Observer.
“That interest is in direct conflict with the interest that the COP president should have in extracting the most ambitious outcomes possible from the climate change conference,” Abreu said. She said there is no conflict of interest policy in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to address this issue, and it is the first time a sitting oil company executive has held a top role at a U.N. climate summit.
Green Party of Canada leader Elizabeth May said Al Jaber should step down as CEO of the national oil company and “dedicate 100 per cent” to the “vital role” of COP president. He echoed the calls of civil society groups in the department. “The important role of COP president requires “a huge amount of preliminary work.''''
The only mitigating factor is the fact that Al Jaber wears two hats when it comes to energy. Alongside his CEO duties, he also serves as chairman of Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, also known as Masdar, a renewable energy company. The company's website states that it drives innovation in clean technologies and has a “smart first-mover approach in green hydrogen.”
May said that went some way to easing her “fear of the whole situation.”
“Frankly, it would be a shame for us to be meeting in the United Arab Emirates,” Prime Minister Theresa May said. Canadian National Warden, noted that the United Nations system conducts rotations by region of the world. “It is certainly not ideal for the conference to be held in a country that is deeply involved in promoting fossil fuels.”
Canadian politicians and civil society groups are condemning the United Arab Emirates' decision to have the CEO of its national oil company lead this year's international climate negotiations. #COP28 #climatechange
The recent United Nations climate change conference held in Egypt came under fire for the attendance of more than 600 fossil fuel lobbyists. May said the host country would have a big influence on the outcome of the negotiations.
The United Nations holds a climate change conference in Poland every five years, but Prime Minister Theresa May said, “Poland is a coal-producing country and does not support a successful phase-out of coal and the phase-out of fossil fuels.'' Therefore, it becomes a terrible COP.”
He predicted similar problems would arise at COP28, which will be held in the UAE, a top 10 oil producer in the world and the fourth-highest per capita emissions after Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait as of 2019. But May mused that “the pressures on the country and on the president now and the reaction to his appointment could steer them in a positive direction.”
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the UAE pumped 3.8 million barrels of oil per day in 2021. The oil and gas industry accounted for 30% of the UAE's GDP in 2020, and it boasts vast oil and gas reserves.
“Can we really trust that the next COP presidency will drive progress in the fight against climate change?” said Bloc Quebec environment critic Monique Pauzet. Canadian National Warden in a statement sent via email. “The oil lobby has become too powerful right now, and it is doing great damage to the entire planet.”
“…allowing a representative from our industry to chair (COP28) is a last resort!” Pause's statement read. Pause believes a multilateral diplomatic effort by the federal government to overturn the nomination is “essential,” but he doubts Canada will follow through.
Federal Environment Minister Stephen Guilbeault “looks forward” to meeting with the president later this year “to begin advancing his ambitious agenda,” a statement from an Environment Canada spokesperson said. “We are more committed than ever to supporting the global transition away from dependence on fossil fuels and toward cleaner, renewable energy.”
The UAE aims to produce almost half of its energy from renewable sources by 2050, and as of October 2022, six hydrogen energy projects are under development. The 2050 energy strategy states that 38% of the country's energy will come from gas, 6% from nuclear power and 12% from coal combined with carbon capture technology.
NDP environmental critic Laurel Collins said she is “disappointed” but not surprised that the federal government has not spoken out and opposed Al Jaber's nomination.
“Unfortunately, this is what we see here in Canada and around the world, where governments are listening to the oil executives and big oil companies rather than the interests of their own people,” Collins said. canadian national warden In a telephone interview.
At COP27, more than 80 countries called for a commitment to phase out fossil fuels to be included in the final agreement. This year, Mr. Abreu said all of those countries, including Canada, which supported the 11th-hour call, announced plans to ensure that climate change talks are not subject to the same level of influence as the United Arab Emirates' counterpart. I look forward to talking with you. The interest in fossil fuels we've seen in the last year or two.
“If the UNFCCC continues to be dominated by stakeholders who want to maintain the status quo, the ability of countries to engage in such dialogue will continue to be ignored,” Abreu said.
Some issues could be used by countries and civil society groups to test the UAE in the run up to COP28, she said.
“Will the discussions on phasing out fossil fuels that began at COP27 move forward? Will the UAE take action to limit the influence of fossil fuel lobbyists… or will we see even more of them than last year?” Abreu asked.
He said that the concrete thing the UAE could do as an act of goodwill was to shift some of the billions of dollars in windfall profits from oil and gas revenues into climate finance, and in November he said, pointing to Barbados, which called out to the company. He aims to donate 1% of the profits to a fund that helps pay for the damage caused by climate change.
May said this year's climate talks would be particularly important as countries will consider whether the world was on track to meet climate change targets.
Conservative environmental critic Gerard Deltel declined to comment.
Natasha Brodsky / Local Journalism Initiative / Canadian National Observer
