At the COP28 climate summit on Saturday, more than 110 countries are expected to support a commitment to triple the amount of installed renewable energy worldwide by 2030. Some are even pushing for the agreement to be global by the end of the UN conference.
To achieve the dramatic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that is required this decade to prevent the release of more severe climate change, the United States, the European Union, and the United Arab Emirates, the host nation of COP28, have been rallying support for the pledge.
At the COP28 meeting on Thursday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated, “More than 110 countries have joined already,” regarding the renewables pledge. “I call now on all of us to include these targets in the final COP decision.”
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It remains to be seen if businesses and governments will mobilize the significant investments required to reach the target. While the use of renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, has been expanding globally for years, in recent months project delays and cancellations have been necessitated by labour shortages, rising costs, and supply chain problems, costing developers like BP and Orsted billions of dollars in writedowns.
The nearly 200 participating nations would also need to agree on the deal in order for it to be included in the final decision made at the UN climate summit. Although both China and India have expressed support for tripling the amount of renewable energy in the world by 2030, neither country has stated that it will support the entire pledge, which combines the increase in clean power with a decrease in the use of fossil fuels.
Among the nations already on board are South Africa, Vietnam, Australia, Japan, Canada, Chile, and Barbados, officials told Reuters.
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At the COP28 on Saturday, there will be several energy-related announcements made, such as the promotion of nuclear energy, agreements to reduce the use of coal, and new funding and measures to combat methane emissions, in addition to the pledge about renewable energy.
END OF PHASE?
One of the main choices that countries will have to make at COP28 is whether to finally agree to “phase out” the world’s use of fossil fuels over time. The primary cause of climate change is the burning of coal, oil, and gas to produce energy.
According to a draft of the pledge for renewable energy obtained by Reuters, new coal-fired power plant financing would stop and “the phase down of unabated coal power” would be implemented.
According to a think-tank Ember analysis, tripling clean sources like wind and solar and doubling energy savings would provide 85% of the reductions in fossil fuel use required this decade to meet global climate goals.
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The targets will increase the pressure on developed countries and international financial institutions to unleash the enormous investments required to reach 11,000 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030. This pressure will be especially directed towards lowering the high cost of capital that has impeded renewable energy projects in other developing countries, particularly Africa.
“We still have a mismatch between our potential and our capacity to draw investment,” Najib Ahmed, a consultant for Somalia’s ministry of climate, stated.
Only 2% of worldwide investments in renewable energy go to Africa. According to the International Energy Agency, Somalia has the greatest potential for onshore wind power of any African nation, but it also has one of the lowest rates of electrification on the continent.
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