Real Asset IMPACT’s Post

On Tuesday I represented President Ursula von der Leyen at the leaders’ session of COP29 Azerbaijan. This two-day official opening of the Conference is the moment when heads of state and government deliver their opening statements. It is also the moment when many partners come together to make new announcements. This time, we focussed our announcements on the clean energy transitions, following upon the positive outcome of last year’s COP28. At COP28 we made historic commitments: tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030. This is not just a target but the best investment we can make. Renewable energy is homegrown, it creates jobs, it strengthens our independence, and it is cheaper than its dirtier alternatives. In 2023 the EU reduced emissions by 8%, thanks to a rapid expansion of renewables. Already today, over half of Europe’s electricity comes from wind and solar, surpassing all fossil fuels. But globally, emissions still rose by 1.3% last year. This is our common challenge, and why we wanted to demonstrate our successes, and share the example with other countries. Now we must accelerate, multiplying clean energy investments and projects on every continent. I also announced the EU Methane Abatement Partnership Roadmap – to bring down the carbon footprint of gas imports and exports - and joined a high-level event of the Climate Club, which is an important initiative led by Chile and Germany - where ambitious countries discuss concrete ideas to decarbonise their economies. Together, these initiatives will help build a clean and competitive economy for Europe, and shape a stronger, more resilient global climate framework. I also had good discussions with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and a range of leaders on how to find a landing zone on the climate finance negotiations during the COP. The rest of this week will focus on the technical negotiations to advance with the different texts that we will need to adopt at the end of the COP. Good luck to the EU team, and I’m looking forward to picking up the baton and supporting them again next week! #EUatCOP29

Nice speech....but he forgot to mention the importance of Industrial Carbon Management 🤭 I thought this was where he was going when he said: "Yet if you take a more global look you will find emissions still rose by 1.3% last year.  It shows where our common challenge is. " It does indeed show where the challenge is: fossil fuel emissions. Ideally we can reduce them by quickly growing renewables and improving efficiency. But clearly that is not going fast enough and we are already running into limits in some EU countries (grids, costs, etc). We need to stop pretending that we can phase out fossil fuels fast enough. Of course we need to keep pushing on all these things Wopke Hoekstra mentions in his speech. But we ALSO have to start reducing emissions of the fossil fuels we still use. Not only methane, but also CO2. EU did a good job catching up recently with the industrial carbon management strategy and the 50 Mt target in the NZIA. But we are recovering and storing less than 1% of all the fossil carbon we still use in Europe. In 2050 that has to be 100%. That is not going to happen if we don't make it happen! we need policies, regulations, incentives for scaling up CCS and CDR more rapidly, in the same way that we needed them (and still need them) for renewables, batteries, grids, etc. And we need the EU to talk about the importance of this at COPs, so that other countries and regions will also start working on this and including targets in their NDCs. It is not EITHER-OR but AND-AND: grow renewables further (reducing fossil fuel demand and use) AND gradually reduce the carbon footprint of remaining fossil fuel use to net zero. Let's be honest, the transition may take more time than we hoped, and then it becomes more important still that we reduce the emissions from fossil fuel use by ramping up CCS and CDR. Tom Berendsen Henri Bontenbal Silvio Erkens Bram Cool

“Renewable targets remain largely unchanged despite COP28 government commitments, report shows” COP29 is underway, and the world is falling short. A staggering 130 countries pledged to triple renewable energy by 2030. According to the article I’ve copied in the comments, yet, only 8 have since increased their targets. We’re currently 3,758 GW behind schedule - a 34% deficit. Without urgent action, even these less ambitious goals risk slipping through our fingers. To bridge this gap, we must prioritize: 👊🏼 Workforce Expansion: A massive upscaling of the renewable energy workforce is imperative, from production to installation and maintenance. 👊🏼 Standardization: Streamlining technologies, equipment, guidelines, regulations, and risk management strategies will accelerate progress and reduce costs. 👊🏼 Enhanced Collaboration: Sharing knowledge, lessons learned, and best practices is crucial to avoid repeating mistakes and drive innovation. 👊🏼 Sustainable Pricing: Making renewable energy affordable and profitable for all stakeholders is essential. Lowering development and operational costs, coupled with supportive policies, will be key to unlocking investment and scaling up projects. As COP29 unfolds, let's hope world leaders rise to the challenge and commit to bold, actionable steps to secure a sustainable future. #renewableenergy #energytransition #COP28 #COP29 #sustainability

Join us on 16 November #COP29! To date, the enabling power of energy efficiency improvements has largely been overlooked when financing the energy transition. COP28 catalysed commitments on the energy package including the target for doubling the rate of improvements of global energy efficiency by 2030. Organised by the High-Level Climate Champions in partnership with the African Energy Commission of the African Union (AFREC) and the Latin America Energy Organization (OLADE - Organización Latinoamericana de Energía), this high-level, multi-stakeholder and implementation-focused session will show how the Global South can drive energy efficiency improvements through policy and market-based approaches articulated around regional leadership that creates the enabling environment for investments. Hear from the African Union, the COP28 UAE Presidency, financial institutions (African Development Bank Group, Asian Development Bank (ADB)), businesses (#CompanhiaEnergéticadeMinasGerais), programs (Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE), development and research partners (International Copper Association, KAPSARC, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW)) about new energy efficiency initiatives from different regions in the Global South that build on existing efforts, enhancing implementation and cooperation toward the COP28 target for doubling the rate of improvements of global energy efficiency by 2030. Announcements will be made! State of Green Denmark

GOWA’s Journey from COP27 to COP29   As COP29 Azerbaijan progresses, we are proud to share the significant strides the Global Offshore Wind Alliance (GOWA) has made since our establishment at COP27 three years ago. Founded by Denmark, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), and the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), GOWA began with nine governments and seven key stakeholders.   Today, GOWA has grown to include 21 member governments, including three subnational members, and eight stakeholders. And we anticipate welcoming additional members early next year.   Over the past three years, GOWA has participated in more than 10 interventions at major diplomatic events like COP, ensuring our initiatives align with global energy and climate objectives.   A significant focus has been on enhancing Nationally Determined Contributions (#NDCs) to better align with the Paris Agreement. Looking ahead, we are collaborating closely with industry and governments to elevate the ambition of the next round of NDCs by #COP30.   This week at #COP29, we saw the launch of the NDC Guidance Tool developed by our member Ocean Conservancy and supported and endorsed by GOWA. This toolkit is designed to help governments prioritize high-ambition NDCs through offshore wind and unlock investment and accelerate technology deployment.   With our three-year strategy and workplan in place, GOWA remains dedicated to driving the energy transition forward. We are committed to working with our members to implement our shared goals and continue expanding our global community, ensuring the successful deployment of offshore wind technologies worldwide.   Thank you to all our members and partners for your ongoing support and collaboration.   #GOWA #OffshoreWind #RenewableEnergy #ClimateAction #EnergyTransition #3xRE #ClimateChangeMitigation

*COP29: Day 6* (16 Nov 2024) Today, COP29 saw over 1,000 endorsements for the COP29 Green Digital Declaration. This milestone brings together leaders from the private sector, NGOs, civil society, and governments in leveraging digital innovation for Climate Action, calling for sector-wide collaboration to accelerate climate-positive digitalisation, improve energy efficiency, and promote inclusive digital access, especially in developing countries. Furthermore, utilities pledge to boost grids & storage in strong Implementation signal. The powerful global community of 45 utilities & power sector suppliers under UNEZA , reinforced their commitment to annual grids & renewables investment of more than $117bn, driving the path to Net Zero energy. In another front, Members of Alliance for Industry Decarbonization enhanced a collective commitment of reducing GHG direct emissions by 54% as part of 2030 targets. We have less than 6 years to triple renewables towards 11.2 TW by 2030. Only by closing the current gaps needed to achieve the global energy targets we can keep the 1.5°C goal within reach. Tomorrow I share thoughts around positions Africa should be taking at COP29!!

Greetings from my final day in Azerbaijan! I've spent the week at the Baku Energy Forum with leaders from across the region discussing energy cooperations for integrated security and – of course – the connections with affordability and sustainable development. It's symbolic that the COP29 Azerbaijan conference will convene here: where the modern oil era began and at a historic crossroads. There is an emphasis on realistic hope and the pursuit of progressive and pragmatic energy developments and collaborations.    Of the many productive conversations I've had over the past days, I particularly want to thank COP29 President-Designate HE Minister Mukhtar Babayev for his attention to the increasing importance of managing energy-water connections and progressing climate adaptation in parallel with decarbonization; and HE Minister Parviz Shahbazov on how Azerbaijan is developing solar and wind power systems as parts of its energy transitions strategy – using renewable energy at home and increasing its exports of gas to Europe, through regional cooperation.   I was honored to meet HE President Aliyev, and to learn more about his achievements in energy with an emphasis on pragmatic and progressive energy for peace, that will improve lives of everyone in the region and generations to come.   And of course, it's always great to have the opportunity to catch up with COP28 President HE Dr. Sultan Al Jaber.   There is a lot of discussion about green zones and green corridors at Baku Energy Week. Its also clear that the concept of greening is about inclusion, integration and the health of connections - rather than a colour prescription.   Humanity is at the energy crossroads. The future of us all now depends not on choosing one path over another but progressing multiple pathways and connecting diverse and uneven energy dots. Azerbaijan is developing regional cooperations to better manage the connected challenges of energy for people, planet and peace.   It’s a timely reminder of why, 20 years ago, we provided the World Energy Trilemma framework to objectively measure and track performance in minimising trade-offs between security, affordability and sustainability. And why we are now looking to transform the trilemma to maximise synergies between policies, incentives and choices in collaboration. And we will do this, as usual, by learning bottom-up, about managing energy transitions to modern energy access and away from fossil fuels in different places, at different paces, and with greater attention to justice and resilience.   Merci Baku!

Our team recently had the privilege of attending the COP28 Summit in Dubai, where global leaders made significant strides towards a sustainable future. 🌱🌐 In the article titled "Did the COP28 Summit Give a Boost to Renewable Energy Plans?", Zongyuan Zoe Liu from the Council on Foreign Relations dives into the pivotal discussions and decisions made at the conference. 📰💡   Some of the key takeaways are: 🔑 The COP28 summit concluded with a historic pledge to phase down fossil fuel use, marking a unified effort to combat climate change. 🔑 Over 100 countries have committed to tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030, emphasizing a crucial step in reducing global carbon emissions. 🔑 Challenges remain in achieving emission-free energy, including funding, cost uncertainties, labor shortages, and global competition.   Check out the comments for the article link 🔗 👇 and let us know what you think are the biggest takeaways from last year's summit!

🌍 COP29 Azerbaijan & International Energy Agency (IEA): A Call to Action for an Equitable Energy Transition🌍 As #COP29 begins, the COP29 Azerbaijan Presidency and the International Energy Agency (IEA) have joined forces to advance a just and impactful energy transition. Yesterday, they identified five key opportunities for accelerating the global energy goals set at COP28, with a clear focus on reaching the 1.5°C target. 🔑 Five Focus Areas for COP29 Success: 1. Expand Energy Storage & Grids: Key to tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030. 🌞 2. Accelerate Energy Efficiency: We must double our efforts for a sustainable future. 💡 3. Reduce Methane & Fossil Fuel Emissions: Essential to curb climate change impact. 🌍 4. Boost Clean Energy Investment in Developing Economies: Ensures no one is left behind. 🌱 5. Update National Climate Pledges: NDCs must align with the Global Stocktake outcomes. 📊 COP29 aims to deliver real progress by mobilizing support from all sectors—business leaders, civil society, financial institutions, and governments. Together, we can drive sustainable growth, investment, and innovation toward a cleaner, fairer world. 🌎💪 #ClimateAction #EnergyTransition #RenewableEnergy #GlobalPartnership #SustainableFuture #COP29 #IEA

This is a really important piece of analysis from the International Energy Agency (IEA). The COP28 UAE outcome of the Global Stocktake set out a series of essential actions needed to accelerate the transition and achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. But, important step forward as the agreement of these actions, repeated this week in the UN Pact of the Future, unless they are implemented, they mean little. This IEA analysis gives us all, countries, companies, citizens, insight into the size of the prize. Tripling renewables and doubling energy efficiency targets could, on their own, take us two-thirds of the way to a Paris-aligned energy system by 2030. A comprehensive implementation of the COP28 outcome, balanced across countries, sectors and technologies can keep the pathway to net zero by 2050 open. Implementing energy efficiency targets can not only cut emissions but also costs to consumers. Clean energy investment is growing but remains hugely skewed, with over 80% of investment since Paris going to advanced economies and China, making implementation of the COP28 outcomes alongside agreeing an ambitious new collective quantified goal for climate finance (NCQG) a critical element of the COP29 agenda. If fully implemented, the COP28 goals would set the foundation for achieving ambitious NDCs, reducing global energy-related emissions by over 60% by 2035. The IEA describe the next round of NDCs as "a critical test for COP28 implementation". Global agreements are hugely important, but need to be implemented into national policies, shifting incentives and therefore financial flows. Without follow through, we will continue on a destructive business-as-usual path. We have seen in some sectors how setting clear policy targets with certainty of follow through has harnessed finance and innovation to drive exponential change. We need this in all areas, and this IEA report provides us with guidance on the country-specific, granular and certain changes and commitment that are needed. COP29 needs to builds on the Stocktake outcomes and ensure that each country hardwires its contribution to these outcomes into its next NDC and that by COP30 we have much clearer certainty of how and when each of these commitments is to be achieved and reporting on implementation in a way that will move markets, with every country, company and citizen playing their part. Link to report in the comments. #iea #cop28 #cop29 #exponentialeverything