US Backs Tough Fossil Fuel Phase Down Pledge at Climate Summit

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November 17, 2022

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by Jennifer A Dlouhy (Bloomberg) Countries mulling vow to ‘phase down’ all fossil fuels; Previous climate agreements have focused only on coal -- The US will back a proposal to phase down all fossil fuels at the UN climate conference as long as it focuses on projects with unchecked emissions, climate envoy John Kerry said Wednesday.

That gives another boost to a call by India for countries at the conference to commit to phasing down all fossil fuels — going beyond last year’s pledge that focused solely on coal. On Tuesday, the European Union also said it would join the UK and small island nations in backing India’s proposal, adding pressure to the Egyptian COP27 presidency to include the wording in a drafted agreement that could be unveiled late Wednesday.

“It has to be unabated oil and gas,” Kerry, the US special presidential envoy for climate, said in an interview at the summit in Sharm El-Sheikh. “Phase down, unabated, over time. The time is a question, but ‘phase down’ is the language we supported.”

The US position would mean tacit support for abated oil, gas and coal projects -- generally those that use carbon capture and other technology to control greenhouse gas emissions. That’s an important distinction for some fossil fuel advocates in the US, where President Joe Biden’s pre-election comment that coal plants across America will be shut down and replaced by wind and solar power, prompted a backlash.

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Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, said in an interview last week that the kingdom would be very unlikely to support an agreement that included the phase down of oil. READ MORE

EU, UK Join India’s COP27 Push for Tough Pledge on Fossil Fuels (Bloomberg)

COP27 Set for Showdown After Draft Leaves Out Fossil Fuel Pledge (Bloomberg)

Middle East Oil Giants Assert Themselves in Climate Politics -- Fossil fuel-producing nations and Big Oil executives are punching back at the COP27 climate gathering in Egypt (Bloomberg)

What Do Sinking Islands Want at COP27? To Turn Oceans Into Cash -- Caribbean countries have emerged as innovators in climate finance this year, getting more creative and more direct in calls for compensation (Bloomberg)

Climate talks hit ‘breakdown’ over finance, fossil fuels as time dwindles -- Rich and poor nations remain split on compensation for climate change impacts, as China and U.S. leaders engage on cutting methane emissions (Washington Post)

350.org: Final COP 27 assessment press conference (350.org/United Nations Climate Change)

‘Stand and deliver’ time at climate talks (Politico's Power Switch)

Treaty against fossil fuels floated at UN climate summit (Associated Press)

COP27 came to a close over the weekend. (Environmental and Energy Study Institute)

Banks are already considering climate change in their lending decisions (Imperial College Business School)

Excerpt from Bloomberg: Indian negotiators led the push for a decision on phasing down all fossil fuels on Saturday. While its strategy stems largely from the coal-dependent country’s desire to not be singled out for its dependence on the dirty fossil fuel, others are seeing it as a opportunity to push for more ambition. READ MORE

Excerpt from Bloomberg: Nations set to acknowledge impact of energy crisis on climate; Multilateral development banks called on to provide more money -- Climate negotiators are on track to reject a proposal for a more sweeping plan to phase down fossil fuels, snuffing efforts by India and key developed nations to target oil and gas as well as coal in an overarching deal at COP27.

The Egyptian presidency published the first draft of its so-called “cover decision” and largely kept last year’s pledge made at Glasgow to “accelerate measures towards the phase down of unabated coal power” and phase out fossil fuel subsidies.

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The draft, which is still subject to revisions during the rest of the week, will come as a disappointment for countries who want a phase down of all fossil fuels, not just coal. India led the push, but received backing from the US, European Union and the UK.

The initial draft was slammed by developing nations seeking more ambition from the closing text, setting up a showdown at the two-week summit at the Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh. Many delegates expect the talks, scheduled to end on Friday, to run into the weekend as countries try to bridge differences on a range of issues. The COP president, Sameh Shoukry, stressed today’s version wasn’t the final destination.

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The preliminary text has already drawn swift condemnation from activists.

“Acknowledging only the need to phase down coal while ignoring oil and gas is hugely problematic. This predatory delay is out of line with the science and with 1.5 degrees,” said Collin Rees, campaign manager at Oil Change International. “At a COP shaped by more than 600 fossil-fuel lobbyists roaming the halls, parties fighting for progress must push back against weak language that allows the fossil fuel industry to continue its deadly expansion.”

Small developing nations that have been hit by climate related disasters said it reflects a lack of ambition by the industrialized nations responsible for the bulk of historical climate warming emissions.

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The document has countries call on multilateral development banks to do more to scale up climate finance. They should increase the amount of money provided by three times by 2025 “without exacerbating debt burdens” on national budgets, the document said. READ MORE

Excerpt from Politico's Power Switch: Weaning the world off burning fossil fuels for energy, the main source of human-caused climate change, has also proved contentious. Draft text released today largely reflected agreements made at last year’s climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland, by reiterating a call to phase out coal consumption and adjust fossil fuel subsidies rather than ax them altogether.

That has angered some countries and environmental groups, which argue that the world should agree to phase out the burning of all fossil fuels, a move climate scientists agree is necessary to prevent catastrophic warming.

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Fossil fuel bonanza bill
House Republican leaders said the party is preparing an energy package that could emerge in January as one of the first pieces of major legislation passed by the GOP-controlled chamber, writes Jeremy Dillon.

The measure would seek to unleash domestic fossil fuel production along with critical mineral mining. The bill reads as a list of Republican gripes against the alleged slow-walking of fossil fuel project approvals by the Biden administration. READ MORE

Excerpt from Associated Press: “We all know that the leading cause of climate crisis is fossil fuels,” Tuvalu Prime Minister Kausea Natano told his fellow leaders.

The Pacific country has “joined Vanuatu and other nations calling for a fossil fuels non-proliferation treaty,” Natano said. “It’s getting too hot and there is very (little) time to slow and reverse the increasing temperature. Therefore, it is essential to prioritize fast-acting strategies.”

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A year ago at climate talks in Glasgow, a proposal to call for a “phase out” of coal — the dirtiest of the fossil fuels — was changed at the last minute to “phase down” by a demand from India, earning the wrath of vulnerable countries.

Since then the global energy crunch triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine has prompted a scramble by some countries and companies seeking to tap fresh gas and oil sources.

Pushing back against that, vulnerable nations also called for a global tax on the profits of fossil fuel corporations that are making billions of dollars daily from sky-high energy prices.

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If the small islands can’t get a global tax on fossil fuel profits, Antigua’s Browne suggested going to international courts to get polluters to pay. READ MORE

Excerpt from Environmental and Energy Study Insitute:

Fossil fuels: It repeats the exact same language as the Glasgow Climate Pact on fossil fuels: “Calls upon Parties to accelerate the development, deployment and dissemination of technologies, and the adoption of policies, to transition towards low-emission energy systems, including by rapidly scaling up the deployment of clean power generation and energy efficiency measures, including accelerating efforts towards the phasedown of unabated coal power and phase-out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies, while providing targeted support to the poorest and most vulnerable in line with national circumstances and recognizing the need for support towards a just transition.” According to Carbon Brief, 80 countries, including the U.S., wanted to strengthen the language to include a phasedown of all fossil fuels (not just coal), but the Egyptian Presidency rejected this text. READ MORE