A spokesperson for the COP28 presidency has denied claims that the UAE was planning to pitch oil and gas deals to foreign countries attending the summit.
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The United Arab Emirates planned to use COP28 meetings to pitch fossil fuels deals to foreign governments, leaked documents obtained by the non-profit Centre for Climate Reporting (CCR) and the BBC showed.
The cache of internal records leaked by a whistleblower and published Monday shows that COP28 president, Sultan Al Jaber had plans to quietly raise oil and gas commercial interests during climate meetings with China, Germany, Egypt, and 12 other nations ahead of the summit, which starts on 30 November.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), COP28’s hosting nation, announced in January the appointment of Al Jaber, the head of oil giant Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). Aside from leading the state-owned company – which pumps almost all the crude oil in the UAE and produces about 3.2 million barrels a day – Al Jaber is also the country’s special envoy on climate change and minister of industry and technology. As COP28 chief, he will play a pivotal role in shaping climate negotiations during the two-week conference, which will take place in Dubai.
The appointment has been controversial from the start, prompting dozens of EU and US lawmakers to call for his removal from the prestigious role at the climate summit.
The more than 150 pages of briefing notes include plans to push for a petrochemical deal in Brazil and liquified natural gas (LNG) exports to Germany. One document drawn up by Adnoc and state-owned renewable energy company Masdar shows how the UAE intended to tell fellow oil-producing nations Saudi Arabia and Venezuela that “there is no conflict between the sustainable development of any country’s natural resources and its commitment to climate change.”
COP28 staff members were also told that talking points of the two energy companies “always need to be included” in briefing notes, according to an email exchange obtained by BBC.
The outlet said that at least one nation had followed up on commercial discussions with the UAE’s COP28 team, while 12 countries denied discussing commercial activities or taking part in meetings altogether.
Sheffield University’s Professor Michael Jacobs called the move “breathtakingly hypocritical,” given the UAE’s current role as the “custodian of a United Nations process aimed at reducing global emissions.”
“And yet, in the very same meetings where it’s apparently trying to pursue that goal, it’s actually trying to do side deals which will increase global emissions,” he told the BBC.
The COP28 presidency denied the accusations, saying the documents are “inaccurate” and rejecting claims that they were used in meetings with foreign nations. “It is extremely disappointing to see the BBC use unverified documents in their reporting,” a spokesperson said.
Featured image: United Nations Photo/Flickr
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