Page 8 - AsiaElec Week 45 2022

AsiaElec POLICY AsiaElec

countries of Africa and Asia that are feeling the renewable or less-polluting sources.
deepest impacts of climate change. They are “We and the UAE are increasing our produc-
reporting the most loss and damage caused by tion capacity. We and the UAE are increasing our
climate change, as people’s lives, especially those refining,” Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdu-
of the world’s most vulnerable, are already being laziz bin Salman told ADIPEC.
harmed irrevocably. “We and the UAE are going to be the exem-
Extreme weather events in Africa have killed plary producer: hydrocarbon producer, but also
at least 4,000 people and affected a further 19mn achieve all the sustainability goals,” he added.
since the start of 2022, Carbon Brief warned. At COP26, Russian and China were criticised
Africa produces only 4% of global emis- by US President Joe Biden for “not turning up,”
sions; however, it has to face the brunt of climate and they did not take much initiative.
change head on, suffering the most loss and India famously watered down the confer-
damage. ence’s coal policy in a last-minute intervention,
As such, COP27 is taking place in Africa, replacing the target of the “phase out” of coal
and the devastating, real-time impact of climate with the “phase down” of coal, a semantic dis-
change on people’s lives, and the attempts to deal tinction that hides the major role that coal still
with loss and damage through such UN-led place in the economies of India and China.
programmes as adaptation, mean that the global
South will have strong moral as well as economic What lies ahead
and scientific arguments with which to extract a The Egyptian presidency has said it will priori-
fairer deal from the wealthier West. tise reaching a deal on loss and damage finance
Put simply, the North must provide more cli- in a bid to reduce the impact of climate change
mate finance that they have provided so far. At on poorer countries. Cairo has appointed Ger-
COP26, the figure of $100bn per year had still many’s Jennifer Morgan and Chile’s Maisa Rojas
not been met, and this issue is likely to dominate to spearhead these talks, green think-tank E3G
at the conference. noted.
In terms of climate finance for the global
Major players South, the target of $100bn per year is still not
At COP27 in Egypt, European players are yet met, and the West will be under pressure not
expected to make some of the running. The EU only to meet this goal, but also to push through
said on November 4 that COP27 should find reforms to the global financial architecture to
ways to meet the targets of COP26, meaning meet the needs of green investment.
limiting global warming to 1.5°C and respecting E3G also expressed concerns that given the
the Paris Agreement. energy crisis this year, some leaders might press
The EU said it would focus on concrete for maintaining fossil fuels to provide a path-
actions, including through the adoption of a way out of the energy crisis, instead of doubling
Mitigation Work Programme to scale up miti- down on climate action.
gation ambition and implementation in this crit- Other prospects include US climate envoy
ical decade. Brussels also aims to achieve clear John Kerry’s proposal to accelerate climate
progress towards the Global Goal on Adaptation finance by allowing private companies to offset
(GGA). their emissions by investing in the transition
This will depend on nature-based solutions, from coal to clean energy in developing coun-
meaning protecting and strengthening the nat- tries. This would form part of the Just Energy
ural environment to enable adaptation to climate Transition Partnerships (JETPs).
change while preserving biodiversity. -However, given the experience of the major
Egypt’s close neighbour across the Gulf of JETP to emerge from COP26, $8.6bn for South
Aqaba, Saudi Arabia, is also pursuing a sustain- Africa’s transition from coal, this could be diffi-
ability agenda at the conference, as is the United cult. Talks between South Africa and the West
Arab Emirates (UAE). Both are major investors have been difficult, and Pretoria claims that it
in green projects at home and worldwide thor- doesn’t know when any money will arrive.
ough the Saudi PIF and UAE’s Masdar, among Add in some indecision from the UK, the
others. outgoing COP26 president, and nothing is cer-
However, as both countries said at the tain ahead of the meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh.
ADIPEC oil conference in October, this green UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has changed his
thrust will be parallel with continued oil produc- mind at the last minute and will go, while King
tion expansion. Charles will not.
Both insisted that oil remains a cornerstone The outlook is gloomy for COP27, with
of energy supply, but said they were working to the potential for a repeat of India’s last-minute
lower emissions and increase production from damper on proceedings in Glasgow.™

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 45 08•November•2022