IEA meet: COP28 President, climate and energy leaders urge concerted global action

Leaders in energy and climate from around the world gathered at the IEA’s headquarters in Paris to discuss the next steps needed to fulfill the important energy promises made at the recent COP28 climate summit in Dubai.

In his first major public engagement with the energy and climate communities since the Dubai summit in December, COP28 President Dr Sultan Al Jaber delivered the keynote remarks at the roundtable hosted by IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.

At the event, Dr Jaber highlighted the significance of the agreements made in Dubai, known as the UAE Consensus, which set ambitious goals for 2030 including speeding up the shift away from fossil fuels, increasing renewable energy capacity, improving energy efficiency, and reducing methane emissions.

Dr Jaber told attendees, “I want to keep the spirit alive and build on the momentum and the traction achieved at COP28 in Dubai. As I said after the final gavel in Dubai: We are what we do, we are not what we say. The UAE Consensus set a new direction and a clear course correction. We must now turn an unprecedented agreement into unprecedented action and results. And now is the time for all stakeholders – state and non-state actors – to step up.”

“COP28 put together the biggest coalition of heavy emitting sectors ever assembled at a COP – all focused on effective, meaningful and pragmatic energy transition.”

COP28 President Dr. Sultan Al Jaber highlighted key outcomes from COP28 in driving forward a pragmatic energy… pic.twitter.com/VVI0UqMgbv

— COP28 UAE (@COP28_UAE) February 20, 2024

Participants included leaders like US Special Presidential Climate Envoy John Kerry and former French Prime Minister Laurent Fabius.

They stressed the importance of turning agreements into action and discussed key actions for the upcoming year, such as securing more funding for clean energy transitions and enhancing climate goals outlined in the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

“It’s a brilliant Consensus. A really important Consensus”

Saying “we will” for the first time in history – a transition away from fossil fuel in a just, orderly and equitable manner, and also accelerating in this decade in accordance with the science to by 2050 accomplish… pic.twitter.com/IVgPKUIaaI

— COP28 UAE (@COP28_UAE) February 20, 2024

Climate goals

The discussion centered on how to achieve these targets, crucial for meeting the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global temperature rise. The goal is to ensure that efforts remain on track to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees C even as data from the past 12 months shown that global warming has exceeded this threshold.

Dr Birol, the IEA Executive Director, pledged to work closely with the COP28 Presidency and upcoming COP hosts Azerbaijan and Brazil.

He highlighted IEA’s role in tracking commitments, supporting countries in developing NDCs, and finding solutions for financing clean energy transitions. “The consensus reached in Dubai is very significant for the global clean energy transition. By calling for a just, orderly and equitable transition away from fossil fuels, with action accelerating this decade, it sets the direction of travel for the global energy sector very clearly for the first time,” Dr Birol said.

“This is a historic decision. But it will also require a lot of hard work on implementation and continued, ongoing analysis of progress and means to achieve these goals. The IEA is prepared to lead in these efforts – working in partnership with countries around the world, as well as present and future COP Presidencies, to transform vision into reality.”

Additionally, he announced the launch of a new series of dialogues with the COP29 Presidency to facilitate knowledge-sharing and prioritise actions leading up to COP29 in November.

“The UAE Consensus is game-changing for the global energy transition. It sets out very clearly, and for the first time, the direction of travel for the global energy system.” – Dr Fatih Birol, @IEA Executive Director#COP28 #UAEConsensus @fbirol pic.twitter.com/S74MiXzGmG

— COP28 UAE (@COP28_UAE) February 20, 2024

COP Troika

The COP Presidencies Troika (the Troika) was a key achievement of the COP28 Presidency and mandated in the UAE Consensus.

The Troika was formally launched last week to unite COP28 with the COP Presidencies of Azerbaijan and Brazil and will enhance international cooperation to stimulate ambition in the next round of NDCs.

“The Troika will, for the first time, bridge the gap between COPs. It will lock in continuity, maintain momentum, and help anchor implementation of the historic UAE Consensus. It will aim to turn the commitments made at COP28 into concrete results.” Dr Jaber said.

Read: UAE launches climate ‘troika’ with future COP presidencies Azerbaijan, Brazil