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‘Step up, align around net zero and eliminate routine flaring’: COP28 President-Designate

Jovi Ho
·3-min read

“Everyone must be around the table to make the transformational progress needed, and especially the energy industry.”

COP28 President-Designate Sultan Al Jaber called on the oil and gas industry to rally around ambitious decarbonisation targets as part of the COP28 Presidency’s Action Agenda to fast-track the energy transition and keep 1.5°C within reach.

Speaking at the start of the 2023 Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference (ADIPEC) on Oct 2, Al Jaber reiterated calls on industry to “step up, align around net zero by or before 2050, zero-out methane emissions and eliminate routine flaring by 2030”.

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He welcomed recent progress and action from over 20 oil and gas companies, including both international and national oil companies (IOCs and NOCs), which have “positively answered the call” to take the challenging but achievable steps to curb emissions from the production of energy.

“This took time, effort and many months of hard work, negotiation and collaboration. We are counting on many more to come onboard and start taking action to decarbonise further and faster. I urge everyone to make this commitment at COP28, a COP where I am calling on everyone to set the highest ambitions, follow through with practical actions and deliver real results,” says Al Jaber, who is also Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The event was attended by Shiekh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, vice-president of the UAE, along with 160,000 energy professionals, 2,200 exhibiting companies, as well as 54 NOCs, IOCs and IECs.

Kicking off the event, which runs until Oct 5, Al Jaber says: “This industry can and must help to drive the solutions. For too long, this industry has been viewed as part of the problem, that it is not doing enough and, in some cases, even blocking progress. This is your opportunity to show the world that, in fact, you are central to the solution.”

Noting the scale of the climate challenge, Al Jaber says the world must reduce emissions by at least 43% over the next seven years to keep 1.5°C within reach. “That is our north star; it is our destination. It is simply respecting the science, and we must do this while also ensuring human prosperity by meeting the energy needs of the planet’s growing population.”

Al Jaber highlights three priority areas: curbing emissions from the production of energy, scaling up renewables and decarbonising hard-to-abate sectors, such as steel cement, aluminium and heavy transportation.

For the oil and gas industry, eliminating methane leaks and flaring is the fastest way to make the biggest impact on operational emissions in the short term, says Al Jaber. Gas flaring refers to burning off gas that comes out of the ground while drilling for oil.

He also stated the need to “overcome the hurdles to scale up and commercialise hydrogen and carbon capture technologies”. “Everyone must be around the table to make the transformational progress needed, and especially the energy industry. No other industry has the same ability to manage complexity, depth of knowledge, engineering talent, technology, capital and scale that is needed for the task at hand.”

The COP28 President-Designate’s call to implement a comprehensive energy transition plan is part of the COP28 Presidency’s Action Agenda, which is based on four key pillars. These pillars include fast-tracking a just and orderly energy transition, fixing climate finance, focusing on people, lives and livelihoods and underpinning everything with full inclusivity.

COP28 will take place at Expo City Dubai from Nov 30 to Dec 12. The conference is expected to convene over 70,000 participants, including heads of state, government officials, international industry leaders, private sector representatives, academics, experts, youth and non-state actors.

As mandated by the Paris Climate Agreement, COP28 will deliver the first-ever “global stocktake” — a comprehensive evaluation of progress against climate goals.

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