INTERNATIONAL WORK
COP28 – Historic but not perfect agreement
At COP28 in Dubai in December 2023, the world came to an historic, but by no means perfect, agreement which begins to chart the global path away from fossil fuels.
For the first time in 30 years we have language in the COP text which addresses fossil fuel as the source of climate breakdown and which calls for change. While there was much discussion around the form of words in the text, for me the meaning and intent of “transition away from” and “phase out” are the same thing. The most important issue is that there is, for the first time, a strong and united message from nearly 200 nations and states at COP that the future is renewables.
I was honoured to be one of the lead EU negotiators at the global climate conference with a particular focus on climate finance.
Climate finance is the issue that is key to unlocking the shift we need to make to switch investment and business away from fossil fuels and towards renewables, particularly in the developing world.
In this area, the COP text is also good. It talks about building a new, more just renewable and energy efficient future. This will require us to change the global financial architecture – an area we will continue to work on this over this coming year in advance of COP29 in Azerbaijan but one we now know there is global appetite for.
I was very proud of the Irish team overall for their work on climate finance. Many of the issues which we presented as part of our concept note (below) were reflected in the final text.
Loss and damage Agreed early
COP28 got off to a really positive start with agreement on Loss and Damage over the opening weekend. Ireland committed €100,000 to the new global fund to support the most vulnerable countries in the world against the impacts of climate change, making us one of the largest contributors per capita.
The year previously, at COP27, I had the honour of being the EU’s lead negotiator on loss and damage financing. We came to significant agreement that there would be a dedicated fund for the most vulnerable countries. Following on from that, Ireland shared a seat with Germany on the transitionary committee tasked with progressing it. It was the work of this committee that helped ensure the early global agreement on this vital fund.
International Energy Agency
In mid-February 2024 I will co-chair the 2024 International Energy Agency Ministerial Meeting, alongside my Bruno Le Maire, French Minister for Economy and Finance. The IEA is at the heart of the global dialogue on energy, working with countries around the world to shape energy policies for a secure and sustainable future.
The IEA has set a target to double renewables and triple energy efficiency by 2030, an ambition that is now reflected in the COP28 text and one that is at the heart of ensuring energy and climate justice. The international Ministerial will set the work programme and strategic direction for the IEA for the coming two years, helping to ensure that this global ambition will be achieved.
Historic European Off-shore Wind Co-operation
In 2022, I was co-President of the North Seas Energy Co-operation (NSEC), with the European Commission. We hosted a major meeting in Dublin where members agreed – for the first time – ambitious collaborative offshore renewable energy targets for the whole EU. In December 2022, the members of the NSEC and the United Kingdom agreed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on increased cooperation, a key priority of mine during Ireland’s Co-Presidency.
Concept paper – Climate Financing and Energy Equity
Download Full Concept Paper Here
Much of my work at an international level this year has been based around a concept paper which I have developed, addressing both climate financing and access to renewable energy for developing countries. It has formed the basis of many of my discussions internationally throughout this year and will be central to Ireland’s position at COP28. Here are some of the key points.
We are at a critical point in human history where we need multilateral cooperation on a scale never seen before to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions
Radical reform of the global financial system will be needed if we are to provide the necessary climate finance for mitigation, adaptation, capacity building and loss and damage.
Too many parts of the world are at a disproportionate disadvantage. We are falling behind in our efforts to lift people out of extreme poverty. World levels of hunger are back to where they were in 2005. Some 15% of countries are currently in debt default and 45% are at risk of becoming so.
Our task in COP28 is to deliver as ambitious an outcome as possible to reassure people we can meet our goals at a time when the evidence of climate change is all too real across the world.
The cover decision and conclusions from COP should provide certainty on delivering the existing $100 billion climate finance commitment while building momentum behind the reform of our multilateral financial institutions and financial markets to support a just energy transition.
We can set the goal of tripling of renewable power and doubling of energy efficiency by 2030 and chart a global pathway to net-zero CO2 emissions in order to halt global warming. Those goals have to be accompanied with a clear pathway to the orderly phase out of fossil fuels
There can also be a mosaic of solutions for more innovative finance. Proposals like a levy on aviation and maritime and reform of Multilateral Development Banks as well as other global solutions for local actions should be considered.
While a lot of good work has been done, it is clear that private financial markets are not fully effective in directing necessary capital to areas that need most support – particularly Africa.
Therefore, at this crucial time, it is necessary to think bigger. We could consider, for example, a commitment by fossil fuel companies to invest in clean energy. 600 million people in Africa have no access to electricity. There are more solar PVs in the Netherlands than there are in the whole of Africa, which has 40% of the world’s solar radiation.
Europe already has an energy efficiency obligation on energy companies to invest in energy efficiency. This obligation, if expanded to a global level, and could deliver significant finance to developing economies, and returns to their investors. This would help lead the global transformation to clean energy and reduced emissions.