COP28 President-Designate Urges Oil Industry to Eliminate Methane Emissions by 2030 and Eliminate Carbon Intensity

Methane emissions are among the leading causes of global warming, and according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA), fossil fuel operations generate more than a third of all methane emissions from human activity. . Therefore, action on methane is considered one of the most effective measures the energy sector can take to mitigate climate change.

“The goal for this industry and all industries is clear. We need to phase out emissions from all sectors, including transportation, agriculture, heavy industry and, of course, fossil fuels, while investing in technologies to eliminate all viable zero-carbon alternatives,” Jaber said.

For this to happen faster, he said the relationship between big energy producers and consumers must be reinvented from one based purely on supply and demand to one focused on “co-creating the future.” Jaber added that it must be brought to developing nations as new technologies are developed and implemented for climate action and energy transition to be effective globally.

“It is critical that as we embrace new technologies, the global south is not left behind. Last year, developing economies received only twenty percent of clean technology investments. These economies represent seventy percent of the world’s population, that is, more than five billion people. Technology is essential to help the most vulnerable communities, develop capacities and make the leap towards a low carbon economic development model”, he said.

To maximize technology adoption in developing countries, the public, multilateral and private sectors must “supercharge” climate finance to make it “much more available, more accessible and more affordable”.

Since his appointment to lead the global climate talks later this year, Jaber has repeatedly opined that the role of the developing world is critical in the fight against climate change and has called for efforts to ensure an inclusive energy transition. and climate justice. At the India Energy Week in February, Jaber addressed these issues and assured developing countries that the United Arab Emirates would push for energy and climate justice.

COP28, or the 28th United Nations Conference on Climate Change, is scheduled to take place between November 30 and December 12 in the United Arab Emirates. Jaber’s appointment as COP28 president sparked some backlash among climate activists, given his position as CEO of a major oil company. For his part, Jaber has maintained that he and his team will actively listen and engage with all global stakeholders.

At India Energy Week, Jaber had suggested that the hydrocarbons industry should be included as a partner in the fight against climate change, not an adversary. Jaber had said that the world still needs hydrocarbons as a bridge to a new energy system. “We cannot disconnect the current energy system before we have built the new one. As such, we must minimize its carbon footprint, only invest in the least carbon-intensive barrels (of oil) and continue to reduce its intensity,” he said.

Jaber has also been pushing for a rapid increase in global renewable energy capacity. In January, he called for tripling global renewable energy capacity to 11,000 GW by 2030. “And we should set a goal of doubling that again by 2040. That said, renewables are not and cannot be the only answer,” he said on Wednesday.

Jaber added that many industrial plants cannot operate on renewable energy alone and that is where solutions like hydrogen can play a critical role. “But it needs to be scaled up and commercialized to have a real impact on the energy system. And just as smart policies sent the right market signals to the renewable energy sector twenty years ago, hydrogen needs a similar boost today,” he added.

Speaking more about industrial emissions, Jaber said the world needs to “get serious” about carbon capture technologies. “In any realistic scenario that takes us to zero (net emissions), carbon capture technology will have a role to play. Without it, the math just doesn’t add up,” he said.

“Cost remains the biggest barrier and we need policy makers to incentivize tech companies to help commercialize all kinds of carbon capture… And we need to go further, using technology to turn captured carbon into products with practical applications and commercial value,” added Jabber.

He also underscored the need to continue driving advances in battery storage, expanding nuclear power, and investing in new energy pathways such as fusion. Jaber also urged tech companies to focus on agricultural technology, as “food systems and agriculture are the single largest source of greenhouse gases, accounting for more than a third of global emissions.”

The correspondent is in Abu Dhabi for UAE Climate Tech at the invitation of the UAE Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, ADNOC and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar).