Baku continues to ‘work on’ its own climate plan and maintains that fossil fuels will be necessary ‘for years to come’.
The president of Azerbaijan, host country of the COP29 climate summit this year, has defended the country’s fossil fuel sector, arguing that its “oil and gas will be needed for years to come” due to European demand.
Ilham Aliyev told a meeting of climate ministers in Berlin on Friday that while Azerbaijan wants to increase its supply of green energy, it also is investing in gas production because “Europe needs more gas” due to the “geopolitical situation.”
The EU has turned to Azerbaijan for gas after the Russia’s war against Ukraine and the bloc has signed an agreement to double the country’s gas imports to 20 billion cubic meters by 2027.
Azerbaijan’s nomination to host the world’s largest climate summit has drawn criticism over its human rights record and the importance to its economy of preserving fossil fuel production. The burning of fossil fuels is by far the largest contributor to global warming.
According to data from the International Energy Agency, Oil and natural gas contribute about 90% of Azerbaijan’s export earningsand finance approximately 60% of the Government budget.
Aliyev stated on Friday that “having oil and gas fields is not our fault,” adding that the country uses these reserves for its development, reducing unemployment and solving other problems.
Its own energy supply will largely come from renewable sources by 2030which will allow it to export more gas to other nations, he stated.
Aliyev also called for countries with large oil and gas reserves to be on the “front row” in debates on how to address the issue of climate change.
He stated that it is an “enormous responsibility” to host COP29 in Baku, and that he wants to build and strengthen bridges between nations.
Azerbaijan has yet to update its own climate plans ahead of COP29, although last week it declared that was “working” to present a national climate plan that aligns with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C warming target. The last plan it presented to the UN promised a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 compared to 1990 levels, conditional on international support.
Mukhtar Babayev, President-designate of COP29 and Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijanwho worked for more than two decades at the state oil company, stated that the country understood that it had to lead by example, and pledged to “place climate action at the center of our national development plans.”
Babayev stated at last week’s Berlin meeting that his two pillars for the COP29 agenda were “raise ambition and enable action”including the exchange of information on how to adapt to global warming.
In his speech at the same event on Friday, the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz He stated that COP29 should build on the success of COP28 in Dubai, where countries agreed to abandon fossil fuels.
Financing will be one of the key points of this year’s debatesand Scholz repeated the message that “Public money alone will not be enough.”
He asked for some emerging economies contribute money to address climate changein what was interpreted as a reference to China.
“Many emerging economies have in turn become large emitters with an increasingly greater economic weight, while the emissions quota of industrialized countries has been substantially reduced,” he claimed.
Countries “that have contributed significantly to emissions over the past 30 years should also contribute to public finances” if they are financially able to do so, he said.
It is estimated that $2 trillion a year is needed for developing countries to shift their economies to green energy.
© The Financial Times Limited [2024]. All rights reserved. FT and Financial Times are registered trademarks of Financial Times Limited. Redistribution, copying or modification is prohibited. EXPANSIÓN is solely responsible for this translation and Financial Times Limited is not responsible for its accuracy.
