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General view of Al Wasl during the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 at Expo City Dubai on November 30, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Photo by Mahmoud Khaled for COP28 UNFCCC on Flickr.
General view of Al Wasl during the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 at Expo City Dubai on November 30, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Photo by Mahmoud Khaled for COP28 UNFCCC on Flickr.
Download | E3G events at COP28

Welcome to E3G’s COP28 live tracker, providing the latest news from Expo City, Dubai. Join us for the latest updates and analysis of the climate negotiations by our experts.

Live tracker

December 13th – Final COP28 Text

E3G Reacts to the COP28 text agreed today:

COP President, Dr. Sultan Al Jaber and Ambassador Majid Al Suwaidi, Director-General and Special Representative of COP28 onstage at COP28You can read E3G’s assessment of the final COP28 text here.

 

 

 

 

 

First reactions press conference with WRI

Watch E3G expert Alex Scott, and experts from WRI, comment on the COP28 text when it was first published.

 

Reactions from E3G experts:
More reaction from E3G experts:
E3G’s Tom Evans quoted in Nikkei Asia talking about Samoa’s reservations about the COP28 agreement:
E3G’s Alden Meyer stresses the need for the agreement to followed by action in Associated Press piece:
December 12th – Final Negotiations
Today’s coal fact:
Behind the scenes with the draft text at COP28 on 11 December 2023. Negotiations on the Global Stocktake text are reaching. Photo by Kiara Worth for UN climate change on flickr.Low-ball on ambition: E3G’s key takeaways on latest Global Stocktake draft text

Read our latest comments on the draft GST text released yesterday.

 

Reactions to the draft text from E3G experts, Tom Evans and Alden Meyer, quoted in the UK Guardian and Reuters:
Comments on the draft GST text from E3G’s Ana Mulio Alvarez and Pieter de Pous, about Loss and Damage and the language used in the draft:
More comment on the draft GST text from E3G’s Ana Mulio Alvarez and Larissa Gross, on the need for more emphasis on energy efficiency, and adaptation finance.
E3G’s Katrine Tilgaard Petersen, Senior Policy Advisor in the Fossil Fuel Transition team, quoted in Energy Monitor:
December 11th – Final Negotiations
Today’s coal fact:
E3G’s Laura Sabogal Reyes on what the Excutive Director of the IEA, Fatih Birol, is saying about what’s needed from COP28:
Event today: A call for urgent climate action: a civil society dialogue between China, Europe & the US:

China, EU and US discussion on progress made around climate, including support to low-income countries.
Time: 14:00 – 17.20 GST
Venue: Multimedia Hall, China-UAE Econony & Trade Exchange Center, Green Zone Call for Urgent Climate Action - COP28 event flyer

E3G’s Ana Mulio Alvarez and Lisa Fischer were quoted in an Associated Press article on the sticking points remaining at COP28:
Ana Mulio Alvarez is also quoted in the Times of India in an article on the draft Global Goal on Adaptation:
Support networks for countries phasing out fossil fuels:

Lisa Fischer leads E3G’s efforts to drive the changes needed across regulation, infrastructure and finance for the decarbonisation of the energy system. Here’s a thread on the support network for countries wanting to phase out fossil fuels.

More from E3G’s Lisa Fischer at the first section of the ‘Global Emission Gap and Climate Action Stocktake’ event at COP28:
A new commission to look into solutions on debt, especially to fund climate transition and nature:
Inflation and COP28 pledges:

A thread on the impact of high inflation on renewables and energy efficiency pledges, from E3G’s Ysanne Choksey, policy advisor in the fossil fuel transition team.

Climate finance: the role of developing countries

E3G’s Byford Tsang unpacks why developing countries are some of the biggest contributors to climate finance in a guest blog for The Carbon Briefing.

E3G’s reaction to the latest GST text

📑 Our experts are currently analysing the latest iteration of the GST text and the GGA text, and we will share our detailed analysis shortly.

Here are our rapid reaction quotes:

🧑‍💼Tom Evans, E3G Policy Advisor, on the GST said:
“The Global Stocktake should be a shared action plan to realise our dream of meeting the Paris Agreement. Instead, this text is a nightmare of weak proposals and internal contradictions: asking to keep 1.5C in reach on the one hand, while on the other setting out no common pathway for phasing out fossil fuels fast. This is not a credible response to the crisis we are in. The Presidency needs to do a fundamental rethink. The text needs considerable strengthening to pass the bar of ambition. We’ve seen from past COPs that this is an uphill battle. The next 17 hours must see the champions of ambition rally hard and isolate those who are holding ambition back.”

👩‍💼 Ana Mulio Alvarez, E3G Researcher, on the GG said:
“It is a positive signal that finance and other means of implementation apply to the dimensional targets, but it is concerning to see that targets have weakened and the roadmap to doubling adaptation finance has disappeared. The proposed text also does not establish an ongoing agenda item for the GGA. Unfortunately, it does not seem that this text sets us up to deliver the level of transformational and incremental adaptation action required. Parties could improve this text by making targets more quantitative and setting a pathway to mobilise finance and action.”

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

More reaction from E3G experts on X/Twitter below.

E3G’s Larissa Gross noted the reaction of the Alliance of Small Island States to the draft Global Stocktake Text:
Reaction from E3G experts to the draft Global Stocktake text released today

E3G’s Larissa Gross, Camilla Fenning and Chris Littlecott, on what the text means, especially for 2x energy efficiency pledges and for coal phase out.

E3G’s Lisa Fischer noted the lukewarm response from the US:

And E3G’s Pieter de Pous has picked up on a tweet from a former COP President:

Reaction from the Global Renewables Alliance to the draft Global Stocktake text:
Updated GST and GGA text – key takeaways

🪫 Overall, this text comes across as a *“low ball on ambition”*. This package would not act as a credible response to the gaps revealed by the Global Stocktake and latest IPCC science. We’ve seen a level of ambition over the last 12 days that is clearly not reflected in this text. This version will smoke out the high ambition pushes from parties and force all to reveal their true positions.

🔎 After a day of private consultations, we now need to see transparency. At Plenary and in the coming hours we must hear what Parties say – we need the ambition champions on both developed and developing country sides to rally hard and put those who are holding this text back on the spot.

👩‍💼 Lisa Fischer, E3G Programme Lead, said on energy:
“There is no collective commitment to any component, and this is the priority issue to fix, as it makes this text completely out of line with 1.5°C. This leaves parties to pick and choose – and they may choose nothing. This sets us back on what was agreed in Glasgow and in Sharm El Sheikh, where we had a collective commitment on advancing coal phase down and clean energy. Also, while the options cover most important themes, each of them need strengthening – in particular on fossil fuels, renewables, efficiency, and abatement.”

👩‍💼 Laura Sabogal Reyes, E3G Senior Policy Advisor, said on finance:
“This iteration of the text loses the direction of travel about how to increase much-needed concessional and grant finance. This is supposed to be an implementation COP, but this text stops at setting the scene around how much money is needed. It acknowledges the gap of adaptation finance, and loss and damage, but fails to provide solutions. We need to see clear, sustainable and predictable sources of finance to scale up much-needed concessional and grant finance. The COP presidency has a key opportunity to build on the existing political momentum for international finance reform that it has squandered so far.”

👩‍💼 Ana Mulio Alvarez, E3G Researcher, said on adaptation:
“The text on adaptation remains weak and unclear in the latest GST iteration. The placeholder for GGA targets should include the request for developed country Parties to provide developing country Parties support of progress towards the targets as established in para 33 of the latest iteration. On finance, the text deletes the request to the Standing Committee on Finance for the establishment of a roadmap to double adaptation finance, while noting that the estimated needs of adaptation are now approximately 10–18 times as much as international public adaptation finance flows, and growing.”

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

Here’s our summary of the day:
December 10th – Food, Agriculture and Water
Updated GGA text published this morning – key takeaways

The GGA draft text has been re-uploaded due to missing words in the version released earlier this morning. Here is the most up-to-date version.

🎯 The Global Goal on Adaptation framework is a tool for Parties, communities and stakeholders to enhance adaptive capacity, strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability to climate change, as well as reviewing progress made towards achieving these goals.

📄 After two years of technical workshops through the Glasgow-Sharm el-Sheikh work programme, a week of intense negotiations at COP28 with two failed text iterations, and a full day of ministerial and technical consultations yesterday, a new GGA draft text was published this morning.

🧐 What does this new text look like?

The good:
✅ There is an option to frame the GGA within the Paris Agreement principles including equity and CBDR-RC.
✅ Sets up a work program to further develop targets and indicators.
✅ Includes goals (although no specific targets) around themes such as water, food, agriculture and health.

The bad:
❌ No clear Means of Implementation language (MoI), including no MoI in dimensions or targets.
❌ No clear language on finance beyond the doubling of adaptation finance goal.
❌ No establishment of a standing agenda item for the GGA.

⏳ We expect bilateral consultations to continue today with a meeting in the afternoon for textual suggestions. The Presidency remains determined to publish a final draft of the complete package by tomorrow, December 11th so that COP28 can end as scheduled at 11am on the 12th.

👩‍💼Ana Mulio Alvarez, Researcher for Adaptation and Loss and Damage at E3G, said:
“This new iteration presents the skeleton of what could be a reasonable framework for the Global Goal on Adaptation. However, without robust means of implementation, including means of implementation targets, the framework will remain hollow and toothless. To really serve as a tool for global transformative adaptation efforts, the GGA requires developed countries to provide support to developing countries for implementation.”

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

E3G’s Ana Mulio Alvarez explains what the GGA text is and why is it so important

💡Finally under the spotlight, the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA) seems to have taken COP28 by storm. But what is the GGA and why is it so important? 👇🏻

The GGA framework is meant to be a tool for stakeholders to:
⚙️enhance adaptive capacity;
⚙️reduce vulnerability to climate change;
⚙️review progress made towards achieving these goals.

💫 Launching this framework would demonstrate that the climate system is fit to provide solutions across the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

📏 An impactful GGA framework would be focused on measurable action but also provide support through Means of Implementation (MoI) and a clear path for work moving forward, including the development of indicators by UNFCCC experts by 2030.

💪🏻 An ambitious GGA framework would include purpose, principles, dimensions, themes, cross-cutting considerations, sources, targets on dimensions including MoIs, targets on themes, indicators and further work with mandates to guide the implementation. A strong GGA outcome would create a strong signal for adaptation finance and serve as a⭐️north star for allocation and mobilisation of adaptation finance.

💵 Finance, technology and capacity building play a key role in the framework and thus, cannot be left behind.

🌎 The GGA is not only mandated by the UNFCCC, but an opportunity for meaningful adaptation efforts to come to fruition and support those most vulnerable who are already suffering the impacts of climate change.

🤝 As the COP28 Presidency and the Adaptation ministerial pair lead on this process now, we hope they will be able to gather consensus and deliver on this important mandate.

More information available on this document produced by Arg1.5.com.

Ana Mulio AlvarezWatch the E3G ‘Week 2’ press call.

Our on-the-record virtual briefing assessing recent developments and what to expect in the last few days of COP28.
Watch here

Event tomorrow: A call for urgent climate action: a civil society dialogue between China, Europe & the US
December 9th – Nature, Land use and Oceans
Today’s coal fact (click to animate):

📄 Yesterday’s second iteration of the draft COP28 decisions on the global stocktake strengthened some points but left much work for ministers to do to avoid ‘no text’ options (see below for more analysis).

👀 Most negotiations will happen in bilateral consultations today with an informal plenary scheduled by the Presidency for 8pm. The Annual High-level Ministerial Roundtable on pre-2030 ambition will be one to watch for the cases made for COP28 decisions as well as proof (or otherwise) of real policy change countries are implementing.

🔦 A leaked letter from OPEC to 13 member states warning them to push back against COP decisions on fossil fuel phaseout puts this key policy move in the spotlight.

🗣 AOSIS and AILAC negotiators were particularly vocal in Friday night’s Heads of Delegation meeting on the urgency for a COP decision on fossil fuel phase out. Watch Samoa’s and Colombia’s ministers in particular today.

📱 German foreign minister Baerbock is another one to watch – her tweet making the case for decisions on phasing out all fossil fuels, not just their emissions was retweeted by the COP28 Presidency.

🤝 Finally, Canadian Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeaut announced yesterday he’s been tasked to find common ground on a fossil fuel phase out decision as well as running consultations on finance with his Egyptian counterpart.

💻 Join E3G experts today at 17:00 GST/ 13:00 GMT / 14:00 CET / 08:00 EST sharing their analysis of the current state of play and the next steps to a positive outcome. Sign up here

Updated GST draft text – key takeaways

📄 The latest version of the ‘building blocks’ for the Global Stocktake decision helps move the conversation forward. Overall, there are still lots of options on the table – but how Parties react to it will be decisive in evolving this into a proper draft text that’s ready for the final showdown.

🧑‍💼 Commenting on the text, Tom Evans, E3G Policy Advisor, said:
“These building blocks give us what we need to construct a global action plan centred around phasing out fossil fuels with renewable energy, and scaling up finance for developing countries. The architects of ambition now must assemble. They can defend and refine the strongest options on the table and push back on the weak proposals peppered throughout the paper. The next 48 hours will be decisive.”

The good:
✅ New near-term signals on the energy package, with a call for parties “to take action this critical decade’
✅ Strengthened option on RES/EE ties increased RES capacity to fossil fuel displacement
✅ Fossil fuel phase out (no mention of phase down) + new options specifically mentioning 2050 in line with “best available science” /1.5 degrees
✅ Improved fossil fuel subsidies language with unhelpful wording on ‘inefficient’ removed
✅ Calls for more ambitious NDCs by 2025
✅ Push to deliver more country platforms for climate finance
✅ Robust political process to deliver this through to COP30

The bad:
❌ Mention of ‘transitional’ fuels – code for fossil gas
❌ Abatement language is still in, with no definition to close loopholes
❌ Stronger language required on energy finance and differentiated responsibilities
❌ Option on scaling up low emissions technologies promotes dangerous distractions and risks locking in overshoot
❌ More needed on adaptation finance

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

Event today at COP28 and livestream:

Panel discussion on Multilateral and National Development Banks climate finance flows and climate mainstreaming.
16:00 – 18:00 GST (21:00 – 23:00 GMT) – livestream link: https://www.idfc.org/cop28idfc/

There will also be a presentation of the report co-authored by E3G and the Climate Policy Initiative: Enhancing MDB and NDB Cooperation.

E3G’s Camilla Fenning quoted in an article asking if all nations will benefit from a renewable energy surge:
From E3G founding co-CEO Nick Mabey:
E3G’s Larissa Gross has been at the Mission Efficiency press conference:
From Byford Tsang, who leads E3G’s work on EU-China climate diplomacy
What is the Global Goal on Adaptation, and why is it important?
Here’s our summary of today at COP28:
December 8th – Youth, Children, Education and Skills
Today’s coal fact:
🤔 With 5 days left at COP28, what does the route to an ambitious outcome look like?

📣 Today at 10am the UAE will announce the pairs of ministers they’ve asked to help find solutions on the tricky issues. These politicians will be crucial in finding the landing zones – especially on the Global Stocktake. In the run up to Dubai, Denmark and South Africa were the twosome tasked with taking this on.

🗣 The landing zone for a GST decision will be defined by the loudest champions for a strong outcome. What’s said by the small islands and members of the High Ambition Coalition – like Chile, Colombia, France and Kenya – will set the bar.

🚂 The key players – including the EU, USA, Brazil, India and China – will have to show their hand. A consultation on the GST among Heads of Delegation is currently scheduled for 5pm. Countries need to make a choice – get on board the ambition train, or get left behind on the platform?

⚖ If a critical mass of countries can coalesce around a package of phasing out fossil fuels, underpinned by a big deal on finance for both mitigation and adaptation, then the UAE may well feel the balance of the scales tip in favour of ambition.

👀 In that scenario, the fiercest opponents to a fossil fuel phase out – Russia and Saudi Arabia come to mind – may simply have no choice but to begrudgingly go along with it. The world will be watching closely to see if they play games with the negotiations and seek to obstruct this eventuality.

So it’s all to play for – and E3G will be on hand to explain what’s happening every step of the way.

🎥 Tune in to hear E3G’s policy experts share rapid analysis of the current state of play, and next steps to positive outcomes. in E3G’s COP28 Week 2 media briefing, tomorrow at 17:00 GST / 13:00 GMT / 14:00 CET / 08:00 EST. Register here

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

Climate and Development Ministerial Signing Moment

Following the 2023 climate and development ministerial during pre-COP, join us for the launch of the Coalition of Ambition vision and goals. Today, 17:30 – 19:00 GST, Expo City Blue Zone, Moana Blue Pacific pavilion.

Find out more about Coalition of Ambition on Adaptation Finance.

RSVP: cdm@iied.org

Coalition of Ambition launch event flyer

E3G’s Larissa Gross continues to track countries pledging to double the rate of energy efficiency gains, and triple renewables capacity year on year.

You can follow her thread here.

Rino Sugioka from E3G’s Fossil Fuel Transition team has been following the Energy Transition Council at COP28:
From Maria Pastukhova, Senior Policy Officer in E3G’s Berlin office:
E3G’s Larissa Gross on the latest draft Global Stocktake text:
Here’s our summary of today at COP28:
December 7th – Looking back at week one
Today is a rest day at COP28, so a good opportunity to reflect on the first week. Here’s our take on week one:

As we bid farewell to week one of COP28, the stakes are higher than ever. Leaders’ political signals in the early days left an ambitious set of marching orders for negotiators to craft into COP decision texts. And new commitments on powering past coal and pledges to the loss and damage fund demonstrated a baseline level of real action.

Traditionally, only the most challenging issues would remain for the ministers to grapple with in week two. However, this year a multitude of crucial matters remain unresolved.

The Global Goal on Adaptation has emerged as a major concern as so far negotiators have made minimal progress despite hours of deliberation. Ministers will need to raise the conversation from the depths of indicators and dimensions to set up a playbook for accelerating resilience preparedness. The Global Stocktake response will be the critical negotiation where fossil fuel phase out, a renewable energy and energy efficiency revolution, a new direction for mobilising climate finance, and high standards for governments’ next climate plans due in 2025 all still hang in the balance.

The pressure is on the UAE Presidency to guide delegates through the upcoming challenges, and ensure transparency and inclusivity, particularly of smaller climate vulnerable states who mustn’t be sidelined from the final deal-making.

Further analysis from the E3G team:

Financing the transition requires systemic change and starts now

The COP28 Presidency’s Climate Finance Framework is a multifaceted approach to climate-related finance.  It offers the opportunity to build a truly global coalition of support, and shape the way that future global finance goals are defined.
By Kate Levick

COP28: phases, progress and potential for the energy transition

Recap last week’s momentum for scaling clean energy and phasing out fossil fuels and how it can be channelled into GST discussions around phase out/phase down, abatement technologies, clean energy ambition, and energy finance.
By Camilla Fenning, Lisa Fischer and Larissa Gross

UK at COP28: government must align domestic and international ambition

The stance Rishi Sunak has taken on climate domestically has hamstrung his ability to exert influence on the global stage. The UK’s leaders need to grasp the opportunity of COP28 to define the UK’s direction on climate.
By Joe Dillon

E3G’s Lisa Fischer ‘s thread assessing week one at COP28:
E3G’s Larissa Gross has been following events in her COP28 thread:

Today’s coal fact:


Week 1

December 6th – Multilevel Action, Urbanisation, and Built Environment/Transport
Today’s coal fact:

😮‍💨 It’s the final day of Week 1. Usually at this stage in a COP negotiators agree as much as they can, and only pass a handful of the most difficult political problems into Week 2. That’s when ministers will show up to solve them.

🌍 But at COP28, it’s looking like almost all of the big issues are still in play. The Global Goal on Adaptation is quickly becoming one of the big worries of Dubai. Last night tensions were flaring in the adaptation negotiations, with hours of talks going nowhere.

📄 That’s only adding to the to-do list for ministers, who will need to spend time and energy on the Global Stocktake. More talks continue at 10am. Essentially everything is still at stake – so the big fights are still ahead.

🎱 With 6 days of talks down and little to show for it, the gaze turns to the UAE Presidency who will take the reins from here. How they’ll handle it is anyone’s guess. Let’s hope that in their back pocket they’ve got a plan to carry the COP package over the finish line.

From E3G’s Lisa Fischer, Programme Lead, on hydrogen fuel-cell car sales in decline
E3G’s Laura Sabogal Reyes speaking at an International Development Finance Club on Public Development Banks:
From E3G’s Lead for EU Sustainable Finance, Jurei Yada:
From E3G’s Kate Levick, Associate Director for Sustainable Finance:
E3G’s Larissa Gross and Byford Tsang tweet about the launch of the Buildings Breakthrough earlier:
Today at COP28:
December 5th – Energy, Industry and Just Transition
Today’s coal fact:
💡 Energy Day – what to expect 💡

🔊 The last few days have seen growing noise on fossil fuel phase out, with visible progress on coal outside the formal negotiations. Leaders, businesses and civil society have been sending clear messages calling for fossil fuel phase out language in the final text.

💬 Pushing back on media portrayal of his fossil fuel comments over the weekend, COP28 President Al Jaber reiterated his earlier statement that a fossil fuel phase down is “inevitable” and “essential” and highlighted that this is the first COP presidency ever to actively call on parties to come forward with language on all fossil fuels for the negotiated text. We need to see this ambition turn into reality through progressive language on fossil fuel phaseout, with explicit language on coal phaseout and no new coal, in the GST text.

What to look out for
🏭 We’ve already seen countries signalling their recognition that there is no room for new coal plants in a 1.5-degree compatible world, with new PPCA members showing that momentum for coal phase out is growing both in the real world and here at COP. The PPCA’s ‘Call to Action on Coal’ event will bring together government leaders to urge all other countries to support a global agreement on these issues at the COP and talk about the action they are taking to accelerate the coal-to-clean transition. Keep eyes peeled 👀 for new members in major alliances and news on support for developing countries.

⚡ Ambition for the “first fuel” will be boosted by Mission Efficiency this morning, with a Call to Action urging all Parties to double energy efficiency. The event will profile new pledges and 💰 finance from industry leaders, and dig into what it will take to deliver 2x efficiency alongside 3x renewables. The energy efficiency ecosystem is signalling they expect an ambitious outcome from COP28, and stand ready to deliver the doubling goal alongside governments who recognize the strategic potential of wasting less energy. Find out more here.

🏦 As the discussion over fossil fuel phase out becomes real, export credit agencies pledged yesterday to support fossil producer economies in their transition. Watch out for more announcements on fossil fuel producer transition today. More info.

👩‍🏫 Leading policy experts will be answering questions on all this and more in E3G’s COP28 Energy Day media briefing, today at 17:00 GST / 13:00 GMT / 14:00 CET / 08:00 EST. Register here.

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

Updated GST draft text – our key takeaways

The latest draft of the GST negotiating text dropped early this morning. This text has ingredients for ambitious outcomes that would amount to a robust GST response. But it’s far from guaranteed. We now need to see champions ratcheting up the pressure to keep what’s good and expand their coalition of support. It’s all to play for and everything is at stake.

The good
🏭 ”Phase out of fossil fuels” is in the text. Keeping these magic words – along with 3x renewables and 2x energy efficiency – is now a top priority.

📑 The text also has a clear pathway for ratcheting up NDCs to ensure they’re comprehensive and can amount to a 60% reduction by 2035 to keep 1.5C alive – with processes to develop and deliver these through to COP30.

☑ There’s also some positive ideas on loss and damage to complement the fund – ideas like countries taking inventories, or compiling a report on gaps.

What we still need to see
⚠ There’s big rifts throughout the text. Equity and historical responsibility are the words of the day – important things, but what’s key is that the GST drives unity in action and collaboration.

🤔 Where’s the finance? The current options are distant from what we’ve seen over the past days with leaders rallying around financial system transformation. The text recognises the task at hand. More creativity is needed to assign tasks to actors across the financial ecosystem and rally them to make finance more affordable, accessible and available, especially for the energy transition.

💸 Similarly, options on adaptation look incremental with technical plans and policies mentioned. But the real prize would be rapid escalation in adaptation finance and much stronger efforts to get adaptation plans everywhere funded and implemented.

👨‍💼Tom Evans, E3G Policy Advisor, said:
“With the clock ticking down to the end of the first week, now’s the time for champions of the most ambitious outcomes to keep up the pressure in the negotiations. We need to see governments coming out strongly for priorities like a fossil fuel phase out, more action on adaptation, and driving total finance system transformation to unlock more money for climate. With sharp divisions between Parties, there’s a high chance that we get stuck – so above all, we need to see the UAE Presidency’s game plan for taking this forward next week.”

Norway and Australia confirm commitment to Clean Energy Transfer Partnership
E3G’s Larissa Gross quoted today in Reuters article on energy efficiency:
E3G’s Isabelle de Lovinfosse speaking at the Powering Past Coal event on a just transition in the Southeast Asia region
Watch E3G-WRI press briefing on updated GST draft text

Virtual press briefing at 09:30 GST / 05:30 GMT / 06:30 CET / 12:30 EST on Tuesday 05 December where experts shared their rapid reactions to the updated GST draft text

E3G’s Camilla Fenning quoted in Climate Change News:
Watch E3G expert’s analysis of announcements, events and developments at Finance Day

E3G COP28 Finance Day press call

From E3G’s Ignacio Arroniz Velasco:
🛢 Between phasing out and ramping up, energy firmly in play 🔋

As fossil fuel phase out is hotly debated in the negotiations, the support infrastructure for countries to do so is growing. Initiatives to set ambition and collaborate on phasing out fossil fuels are gaining traction. Today, Spain, Kenya and Samoa joined the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, which will also support Kenya and Colombia with studies to plan their phase out ($1m each). This comes on top of announcements of Australia and Norway joining 40 other countries and institutions in the pledge to phase out international fossil fuel finance and prioritise clean energy finance instead and 8 export credit agencies  pledging to support countries in their efforts to transition away from fossil fuel production.

👩‍💼Lisa Fischer, E3G Programme Lead says:
“As fossil fuel phase out is hotly debated in the negotiations, the support infrastructure for countries to phase out is growing. This gives a boost towards securing the much-needed text on fossil fuel phase out at this COP.”

🔋 Energy efficiency may not grab the limelight but it always delivers 🔋

💡 Elsewhere on Energy Day, the energy efficiency community showed up with solutions in tow.

✊ Mission Efficiency pledged their support for doubling efficiency by 2030. With a Call to Action and pledges from industry leaders – including the Business Council for Sustainable Development, Climargy, Danfoss, the Energy Efficiency Movement, Metrus, WWF and more – the efficiency community showed up in support of the Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency Pledge backed by 123 countries.

📣 Mission Efficiency is calling on all Parties to include language on energy efficiency, as part of an ambitious energy package, in the final text at COP28. Industry leaders have recognized the strategic opportunity unleashed by energy efficiency and, now, are asking world leaders for a clear signal to double down.

❄ The Cool Coalition launched the Global Cooling Pledge and Global Cooling Watch Report . The Report highlights that cooling equipment is expected to triple by 2050. At the current pace of efficiency gains, this would result in a more than doubling of electricity consumption.

🪫 To avoid this scenario and ensure everyone has access to sustainable cooling in a warming world, the Global Cooling Pledge – with 60+ countries signed on – sets out three strategies:
⿡ investing in passive cooling measures;
⿢ higher energy efficiency standards for cooling equipment;
⿣ a faster phase down of climate-warming refrigerants.

💡 The IEA team has hosted a series of events at COP28 including a Renewables and Energy Efficiency ministerial roundtable. This builds on the IEA’s 2023 Energy Efficiency Market Report, launched on the eve of COP28, which outlines how the world can deliver, on average, an annual 4% improvement rate in energy efficiency by 2030.

🎯 Achieving this goal would not only put the world on track to net zero, accounting for 50% of carbon emission reductions to 2030, but would cut energy bills in advanced economies by one-third.

🏢 Tomorrow, keep an eye out 👀 for the launch of the Buildings Breakthrough championed by 🇫🇷 🇲🇦, an initiative that can drive delivery of the doubling efficiency goal in a challenging and critical sector.

From Kate Levick, E3G’s Associate Director for Sustainable Finance, quoted in an article in Energy Monitor:
Our summary of today at COP28:
December 4th – Finance, Trade, Gender Equality, and Accountability
Today’s coal fact:

Money money money

💸 We have seen substantial climate finance pledges in recent days, including for Loss & Damage, that have helped to build trust and lay the groundwork for constructive negotiations today. Now we need to see this momentum continue into the final text.

What to watch out for:
💰 The Second report of the Independent High-Level Expert Group in Climate Finance written by Nick Stern and Vera Songwe, will build on last year’s calculation of the finance needed for global tradition and make recommendations on how to raise that money.

🌍 Expected to be launched today, the MDBs Country Platforms will be keenly watched to see if this could be an improved country-led financing model which can be customised to national needs but also replicated at scale. Will this model move money faster than the JETPs?

After two days of talks, progress on the Global Stocktake outcome has been slow. More time is needed in closed-door negotiations to see if countries can find areas of agreement, before a new version of the text appears – likely on Tuesday. When it drops, E3G will be on hand to provide rapid reactions.

📢 Hear from E3G experts in our press calls forFinance Day and Energy Day – Sign up to join 👇👇

💸 COP28 Finance Day media briefing, today December 4th, 17:00 GST / 13:00 GMT / 14:00 CET / 08:00 EST. Register here.

💡 COP28 Energy Day media briefing: tomorrow December 5th, 17:00 GST / 13:00 GMT / 14:00 CET / 08:00 EST. Register here.

E3G has a number of events happening this week, starting from today! See the listings in our event flyer.

📑 The Second Report of the Independent High-Level Expert Group in Climate Finance published

The 2022 edition explained that a four-fold increase in climate finance was needed by 2030, to $2.4 trillion/yr. Today’s report contains more such stunning figures, together with recommendations for how to raise the money.

💵 The figures presented by the IHLEG are stark: by 2030 we need x5 increase in concessional finance, a x3 increase in MDB finance, and a x15 increase in private climate finance to EMDEs. Today, investment in EMDEs is in retreat, and finance for adaptation and clean energy are both inadequate.

The IHLEG recommends ‘purposeful’ collaboration to build country platforms, create investment pipelines, and increase fiscal space. Systemic reforms such as reimagining the role of MDBs, and debt relief measures, will be required. The choice to make is between the failure of Paris, or the growth opportunity of the 21st century.

👩‍💼 Kate Levick, E3G Associate Director and Co-Head of the Transition Plan Taskforce Secretariat, said:
“The new IHLEG report challenges Parties to grip the systemic financial reform agenda, picking up where the Paris Summit earlier this year left off. Collaboration and leadership will be required from all countries if we are to achieve the Paris mitigation and adaptation goals, and finance a just global transition for everyone.”

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

E3G events today:
E3G’s Tom Evans quoted in an article by the Japan Times on Dr Sultan Al Jabber’s fossil fuel phaseout comments:
E3G’s Kate Levick and Laura Sabogal Reyes, are at the launch of the 2nd Report of the Independent High-Level Expert Group in Climate Finance:

 

Watch E3G expert’s analysis of announcements, events and developments at Finance Day

E3G COP28 Finance Day press call

E3G’s Kate Levick speaking earlier at the Rapid Response to the Global Stocktake:

 

🚀 Launched today: MDBs Country Sector Platform Approach

📙 COP27’s Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation Plan marked the first time a COP cover text called MDBs and IFIs to more effectively utilise the breadth of their policy and financial instruments to significantly increase climate ambition.

🔁 Fast-forward one year later to COP28, and the MDBs have now launched their “Country-Sector Platform Approach”, intending to shift from a project-by-project to a programmatic approach to achieve the transformational, systemic change needed.

These platforms aim to:

  1. Enhance countries’ climate ambitions;
  2. Accelerate identification of projects and investment needs;
  3. Mobilise finance from both the public and private sector;
  4. Enhance transparency and accountability.
  5. Cross-cutting issues include: just transition, nature and private sector participation.

👂 While it’s too early to judge how successful this proposal will be, it’s clear evidence that the MDBs have been listening. Achieving the transition to a climate-safe world will require all actors (especially the MDBs) working together. Seeing the momentum of the past two years progressively translating to concrete action is cause for optimism.

To succeed (and to crowd in the ever-critical private sector financial flows), these country platforms must:
✅ Remain country-driven (and owned);
✅ Coordinate financial flows, policy work, and technical assistance efforts;
✅ Be based on bankable sectoral project pipelines (which have been agreed nationally amongst all relevant stakeholders).

👩‍💼 Laura Sabogal Reyes, E3G Senior Policy Advisor, said:
“The launch of the MDBs Country Sector Platform Approach at COP28 represents a defining response by multilateral development banks to COP27’s call for collaborative climate action.

This initiative signals the beginning of a much-needed shift by MDBs from a project-by-project to a systemic approach. Maintaining country ownership and coordinating policy work and technical assistance efforts, beyond just financial flows, will be key to success.”

Here’s our summary of today at COP28:
December 3rd – Health, Recovery & Peace

Today’s coal fact:

 

From stage to page

🗓 In the wake of world leaders, attention now turns to the main task at hand: the climate talks. As the cacophony of speeches dies down, it’s easier to hear the signal through the noise.

☑ Momentum on loss and damage, renewable energy and financial system reform gives diplomats looking to capitalise on this important progress the vital ammunition they need to take to the negotiations.

🤐 Yet leaders were worryingly quiet on many key issues, especially adaptation finance and the need to accelerate the phase out of fossil fuels.

🎲 Negotiators inherit this decidedly mixed bag. They are now left to their own devices, at least until ministers arrive next week. The key question is now whether or not champions of high ambition feel empowered by their political masters to push harder in negotiating rooms for strong outcomes.

📑 Later today, the UAE will publish their summary of key messages from the high level events on the Global Stocktake. A new text for the GST may land soon too, if not today then perhaps tomorrow. It’s critical that these documents contain clear reference to the most ambitious elements of the overall COP package. Keeping these options on the table through to the end of Week 1 will be a priority.

🔎 Elsewhere at the COP, important matters that so far have not garnered much attention will come to the fore. That includes agreeing a framework for advancing global adaptation efforts and setting up a process to agree the post-2025 successor goal to the $100bn. While technical and at times dry, success in Dubai is more than what leaders have said on the stage. It’s ultimately about what can be translated into text on a page. 📄

 

Our analysis of how COP28 is going for the UK

 

E3G’s Kate Levick speaking at today’s LuxFLAG panel on how financial institutions can achieve climate objectives and finance the transition:

Image

December 2nd – World Climate Action Summit

Today’s coal fact (click to animate):

 

Day 2 of World Climate Action Summit

🌎 World Climate Action Summit 🌎

Today’s the second day of the World Climate Action Summit. One of the big expected announcements is the launch of the pledge on renewable energy and energy efficiency. This pledge commits countries to work together to triple renewable energy capacity and double the global average annual rate of energy efficiency to 2030, propelling the move to an energy system free of unabated fossil fuels. It encourages collaboration on issues such as supply chains, just transition, expanding financial support and commits to annual progress tracking. Yesterday the EU hinted that their co-led initiative has gathered over 110+ signatures.

👩‍💼Lisa Fischer, E3G Programme Lead, said:

“The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency pledge expected to be launched today will show that a vast majority of countries are ready to take more and immediate action on clean energy and preparing our energy systems for fossil fuel phase out. All eyes are now on the COP presidency to show they are listening and to give this its due place in the Global Stocktake discussions.”

✅ Leaders’ speeches thus far have sent plenty of positive signals on the need to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency technology, but far less so on the equally important parallel need to accelerate action on phasing out fossil fuels.

🤔 Will we see more political capital spent on this vital matter, with countries stepping up to show they’re committed to moving beyond coal, oil and gas?

🇫🇷 France has already floated its proposed coal transition accelerator. More details will land later, including a focus on supporting emerging economies to rapidly retire coal fired power plants and develop renewables. Keep eyes peeled 👀 for any more substantial commitments by countries to ramp up action on coal, oil and gas.

🔎 A key moment to watch will be the GST High Level Event on Mitigation. This roundtable will be a crucial chance for leaders to show that pledges and commitments, while important, ultimately need to be translated into a negotiated outcome for COP28. In other words, much of the hard work in Dubai lies ahead.

 

The Powering Past Coal Alliance announce 10 new members, including the US

 

Reaction to the Powering Past Coal announcement from E3G’s Alex Scott and Pieter de Pous:

 

 

E3G’s Larissa Gross is tracking what COP28 World Leaders say on the target to double progress on energy efficiency. Most recently 🇩🇪 Chancellor Scholz supports 2x efficiency and 3x renewables and FFPO – but misses the mark on gas. Follow along here:

 

‼️ *3x renewable energy and 2x energy efficiency pledge announced, together with major commitments to coal phaseout*

🏭 *Commitments to coal phase-out*

🇺🇸 Real-world trends away from coal are increasingly reflected in diplomatic commitments and pledges. The *US joining the Powering Past Coal Alliance*, alongside six countries, is the most significant diplomatic statement made to date, amounting as it does to a Paris-aligned coal phaseout commitment.

🇫🇷 The French-led *Coal Transition Accelerator* is a positive step forward, with the new Coal Transition Commission established to develop solutions to unlock new sources of public and private financing for the just transition of the existing coal fleet.

🤸 However, investment in enabling coal power plants to be more *‘flexible’* could undermine the intention of this initiative if it is used as a means to delay coal phase-out rather than accelerate it. The Coal Transition Commission should emphasise the need for strong regulatory and carbon pricing frameworks that ensure coal power plants are on a phase out pathway. This should only allow coal flexibility investments as an exception, not the rule.

⚡ Tripling renewable energy and doubling energy efficiency pledge

🏃‍♂️ The scale of commitment to this pledge, with 118 countries, across continents and differing national circumstances, demonstrates unstoppable and collaborative momentum for a global clean energy transition.

🇨🇳🇮🇳 But it’s a missed opportunity that China and India – strong leaders in both renewable energy and energy efficiency (including commitments at G20) – felt unable to sign up thus far.

➡️ The pledge specifics on RE and EE now need to transfer to the COP28 decision text itself, including agreed pathways for delivery, such as finance and technical support. It’s notable that by virtue of signing the pledge, these 118 countries also recognise that energy systems need to be free of unabated fossil fuels ahead of or by 2050, including phase down of unabated coal power and an end to investment in unabated new coal plants. These also need to be agreed in the COP28 decision text.

🧑‍💼Leo Roberts, E3G Programme Lead, said: “Delivering the global energy transition, and the huge emissions reductions and economic benefits it will bring, requires significant progress at both ends of the spectrum – accelerating the phase out of coal, oil and gas, and rapidly increasing the deployment of renewables. The US joining the PPCA, thereby committing to phase out the dirtiest fossil fuel by 2030, is a huge step towards the former. And 118 countries supporting the call for tripling renewable energy and doubling energy efficiency does the latter. What we need to see now is these groundbreaking political commitments translated into the COP28 negotiating text.”

👩‍💼 Larissa Gross, E3G Programme Lead, said: “Getting to a 1.5°C-aligned global pathway doesn’t just mean changing the way we generate electricity, we need to change the ways we use it. Doubling energy efficiency by 2030 would save twice the amount of energy consumed in the EU last year. This is why it’s so important that the Pledge also contains reference to doubling energy efficiency, which will be absolutely necessary to deliver at the pace and scale needed.”

❌ But while the renewable energy and energy efficiency world provides solutions, the oil and gas world hides behind it with poor-quality sticking plasters. 🎁 The UAE presidency has packaged up significant progress on phasing out coal, and rapidly increasing deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, with a weak Oil and Gas Decarbonisation Alliance that ignores the need to phase down fossil fuel production or set pre-2030 methane abatement milestones. The methane finance initiative is welcome, but insufficient: eliminating three-quarters of energy methane emissions by 2030 would cost the industry only 2% of its over $6trn revenue from last year. In this context, the $1bn pledged is vastly insufficient.

👩‍💼 Lisa Fischer, E3G Programme Lead, said: “The theme of today: the renewable energy and energy efficiency world provides solutions, the oil and gas world hides behind it with poor quality sticking plasters. The Presidency may hope this will distract from the need to discuss the phase out of fossil fuels in negotiations, but calls from leaders and countries across the globe such as from Colombia, the European Union, Australia, Kenya and many others have been strong and cannot be ignored.”

🏭 Commitments to coal phase-out

🇺🇸 Real-world trends away from coal are increasingly reflected in diplomatic commitments and pledges. The US joining the Powering Past Coal Alliance, alongside six countries, is the most significant diplomatic statement made to date, amounting as it does to a Paris-aligned coal phaseout commitment.

🇫🇷 The French-led Coal Transition Accelerator is a positive step forward, with the new Coal Transition Commission established to develop solutions to unlock new sources of public and private financing for the just transition of the existing coal fleet.

🤸 However, investment in enabling coal power plants to be more ‘flexible’ could undermine the intention of this initiative if it is used as a means to delay coal phase-out rather than accelerate it. The Coal Transition Commission should emphasise the need for strong regulatory and carbon pricing frameworks that ensure coal power plants are on a phase out pathway. This should only allow coal flexibility investments as an exception, not the rule.

⚡ Tripling renewable energy and doubling energy efficiency pledge

🏃‍♂️ The scale of commitment to this pledge, with 118 countries, across continents and differing national circumstances, demonstrates *unstoppable and collaborative momentum* for a global clean energy transition.

🇨🇳🇮🇳 But it’s a missed opportunity that China and India – strong leaders in both renewable energy and energy efficiency (including commitments at G20) – felt unable to sign up thus far.

➡️ The pledge specifics on RE and EE now need to transfer to the COP28 decision text itself, including agreed pathways for delivery, such as finance and technical support. It’s notable that by virtue of signing the pledge, these 118 countries also recognise that energy systems need to be free of unabated fossil fuels ahead of or by 2050, including phase down of unabated coal power and an end to investment in unabated new coal plants. These also need to be agreed in the COP28 decision text.

👨‍💼Leo Roberts, E3G Programme Lead, said:
“Delivering the global energy transition, and the huge emissions reductions and economic benefits it will bring, requires significant progress at both ends of the spectrum – accelerating the phase out of coal, oil and gas, and rapidly increasing the deployment of renewables.

The US joining the PPCA, thereby committing to phase out the dirtiest fossil fuel by 2030, is a huge step towards the former. And 118 countries supporting the call for tripling renewable energy and doubling energy efficiency does the latter. What we need to see now is these groundbreaking political commitments translated into the COP28 negotiating text.”


👩‍💼 Larissa Gross, E3G Programme Lead, said:
“Getting to a 1.5°C-aligned global pathway doesn’t just mean changing the way we generate electricity, we need to change the ways we use it. Doubling energy efficiency by 2030 would save twice the amount of energy consumed in the EU last year. This is why it’s so important that the Pledge also contains reference to doubling energy efficiency, which will be absolutely necessary to deliver at the pace and scale needed.”


❌ But while the renewable energy and energy efficiency world provides solutions, the oil and gas world hides behind it with poor-quality sticking plasters.

🎁 The UAE presidency has packaged up significant progress on phasing out coal, and rapidly increasing deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, with a weak Oil and Gas Decarbonisation Alliance that ignores the need to phase down fossil fuel production or set pre-2030 methane abatement milestones. The methane finance initiative is welcome, but insufficient: eliminating three-quarters of energy methane emissions by 2030 would cost the industry only 2% of its over $6trn revenue from last year. In this context, the $1bn pledged is vastly insufficient.

👩‍💼 Lisa Fischer, E3G Programme Lead, said:
“The theme of today: the renewable energy and energy efficiency world provides solutions, the oil and gas world hides behind it with poor quality sticking plasters. The Presidency may hope this will distract from the need to discuss the phase out of fossil fuels in negotiations, but calls from leaders and countries across the globe such as from Colombia, the European Union, Australia, Kenya and many others have been strong and cannot be ignored.”

 

 

Norway announced today that they have joined the Clean Energy Transition Partnership – committing to ending international public support for fossil fuels. This major announcement brings CETP up to 40 signatories and counting!

Read more on CETP: cleanenergytransitionpartnership.org

 

 

Analysis of COP28 Presidency’s Finance Framework (announced yesterday) from E3G’s Kate Levick. Framework should support international finance reform being discussed in the round under UNFCCC, and have backing from a globally representative group of major economies. Read more:

 

 

“As always, change happens slowly and then all at once.” E3G’s Chris Littlecott recaps the two decades of work leading up to today’s historic moment of the US joining the Powering Past Coal Alliance:

 

The Global Stocktake can increase our understanding of what loss and damage has and will happen – and therefore the L&D finance and resources needed. Tom Evans at CAN International’s COP28 press conference on the GST, fossil fuels and a just transition:

 

 

Expert analysis of the World Climate Action Summit:

Watch E3G experts Alex Scott, Tom Evans and Leo Robert’s analysis of announcements at the World Climate Action Summit to date, and how this has set the stage for the rest of COP.

December 1st – World Climate Action Summit

Today’s coal fact:

Day 1 of World Climate Action Summit

🌎 World Climate Action Summit 🌎

After the historic outcome on loss and damage funding yesterday – a fitting tribute to our lost colleagues Saleemul Huq and Pete Betts – COP enters chaos phase today with concurrent negotiations and world leaders events.

Leaders set the tone for how ambitious negotiators should be, so what they say matters. Yesterday the COP28 President and the UNFCCC Executive Secretary were clear that this COP needs to agree decisive action.

👩‍💼 Alex Scott, E3G Programme Lead, said:
“The WMO just confirmed that 2023 has broken heat records. We don’t want COP28 to be the COP that breaks the Paris Agreement. With the global stocktake giving world leaders a collective C- on their contributions to achieving the Paris goals, we need them to set the stage for ambitious COP28 decisions on accelerating emissions cuts, transitioning from fossil fuels to renewables faster, and ramping up financing especially for dealing with the impacts of climate change.”

What to watch out for today
🗣️ We expect several flashy global leaders’ pledges – including ones led by the UAE on food systems and on finance. The latter’s a key chance to show how leaders are targeting a dramatic overhaul of the financial system – a hot topic throughout 2023 so far.

🇩🇪 Germany is likely to add flesh to the bones of the Climate Club. Born out of their G7 Presidency last year, it has evolved into a joint play co-led with Chile and over 30 members aiming to drive industrial decarbonisation, starting with driving up standards in steel and cement sectors. But to take off, it must deliver real finance for developing countries – or else risk locking them out of the transition. E3G’s trade expert is on hand to help interpret.

🆕 But leaders need to back up any flashy declarations with new policy announcements and new finance.

💰 With the Loss and Damage fund operationalised, the next area to look out for is the tally of fund pledges – at least $400m USD was pledged yesterday. The EU foreshadowed pledges from the Commission and member states to be detailed today and tomorrow.

💸 But money is needed elsewhere too – keep an eye out for whether governments make pledges to other important funds such as the GCF 👀🇺🇸 and the Adaptation Fund.

📄 On the negotiations, all eyes on the global stocktake room where we expect to see a draft text, or at least building blocks towards consolidating countries’ positions in writing.

📲 E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

From Larissa Gross, Programme Lead in E3G’s Clean Economy team

From Kate Levick, E3G’s Associate Director for Sustainable Finance:

From Alex Scott, E3G’s Climate Diplomacy and Geopolitics Programme Lead:

From Nick Mabey OBE, Founding Director and co-CEO of E3G:

 

🇻🇳 Vietnamese JETP Resource Mobilisation Plan announced 🇻🇳

🏭 The Resource Mobilisation Plan sets out the implementation of the JETP political declaration agreed in December 2022, between the Government of Vietnam and the International Partners Group (IPG) including Canada, Denmark, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The plan identifies the financing needs (for investment and technical assistance) and policy reform needs.

🇻🇳 The RMP was developed by the Vietnamese Ministry of Environment with very little transparency or inclusivity, over a very short period of time, without formal public consultation. Unlike the other JETPs, the Vietnam JETP secretariat is hosted and managed by the Vietnamese Ministry of Environment. Working groups were meant to be set up and led by other Ministries, but they have not started yet.

💬 This process and structure mean that while the IPG was consulted on the content of the RMP, they and GFANZ (a key provider of private finance) ultimately had very limited influence over the scope and contents of the RMP.

⚙ The JETPs are a prime example of the essential mechanisms needed to build confidence amongst major emerging economies that the international community will provide and leverage financial support for their domestic energy transitions. This makes it all the more worrying that, together with the recently launched Indonesian Comprehensive Investment and Policy Plan (CIPP), two of the three live JETPs are resting on pathways that summarily fail to deliver a transition away from coal power.

⤴ Considerably more needs to be done to raise climate ambition and demonstrate to the Global South that the G7 and other donor nations are willing to provide essential financial and technical support needed for them to deliver their domestic energy transitions.

👨‍💼 Leo Roberts, E3G Programme Lead, said:
“It’s great to see the JETPs continuing to turn diplomatic momentum into concrete investment plans, but there are two major reasons to be concerned about this announcement.

Firstly, the ongoing constraints to civil society space in Vietnam have not only undermined the level of ambition in this plan, but created a real threat to its delivery. Support from local business, research and academia, and wider civil society, will be fundamental to building support for actually implementing Vietnam’s energy transition.

Secondly, the investment plan is no longer the pathway to replacing coal power with clean alternatives that the JETP initially promised. Instead, it focuses on expensive or unproven technologies like co-firing, and on keeping coal plants online, but using them ‘flexibly’ rather than closing them early, directly undermining the case for new renewables.”

From Camilla Fenning, E3G Programme Lead:

 

November 30th – COP28 opening

Today’s coal fact:

 

‼ Loss and Damage fund operationalised ‼
After a year of intense negotiations, the Loss and Damage Fund has been gavelled through on Day 1 of COP28.

🤝 Early gavelling of the fund is a positive start to the summit, showing how countries can unite and collaborate in the spirit of compromise. This is a historic moment for the battle for recognition of loss and damage.

💸 However, it is an imperfect text and there is still a long road ahead. The fund should be set up quickly, given developing countries conceded to it being hosted under the World Bank. The World Bank will have to respond on whether it can host the fund under the conditions established by the decision text. If not, a new host will have to be identified and proposed. Additionally, a secretariat will need to be set up. Perhaps even more importantly, developed countries and others in a position to do so will have to come through and pledge their financial support to the fund.

This is why we expect for all of these arrangements to be ready to be approved only by COP29. After that we need to see the money start flowing to those climate vulnerable countries and communities who need it most.

👩‍💼 Ana Mulio Alvarez, E3G Researcher, said:
“Today is a historic moment in the fight for acknowledging and addressing Loss and Damage, which has been ongoing since the very first COP. It sets the tone for the rest of the COP that countries can and must come together for ambitious agreements in the spirit of compromise.

Having this success to kick start COP28 leaves time to focus on a strong Global Stocktake response, so that we can course correct and meet the goal of limiting global temperature increase to 1.5°C.”

E3G experts are available for background, comment and analysis from Dubai. Please contact our press team at press@e3g.org or +44 (0)7783 787 863, or reach out to E3G experts directly – contact details further down this page.

From Alex Scott, E3G’s Climate Diplomacy and Geopolitics Programme Lead:

E3G COP28 Events

You can see a complete list of E3G events on our COP28 events flyer.

9 December: Panel discussion on MDB-NDB climate finance flows and climate mainstreaming

  • Time: 16:00-18:00
  • Venue: IDFC Pavilion & livestream – Cop 28 IDFC – IDFC
  • Organisers: E3G, CPI, IDFC
  • Description: Presentation of joint report authored with CPI on MDB-NDB climate on-lending and climate mainstreaming

10 December: Advancing International Cooperation to Implement Just Energy Transitions in Coal Regions

  • Time: 14:00-15:00 GST (Dubai)
  • Venue: Just Transition Pavilion, COP28 Blue Zone
  • Organisers: International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), Southeast Asia Energy Transition Partnership (SEA ETP), Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA)

11 December: A Call for Urgent Climate Action  – A Civil Society Dialogue Between China, Europe, and The U.S.

  • Time: 14:00-17:20 (Dubai)
  • Venue: Multimedia Hall, China Pavilion EXPO 2020, COP28 Green Zone
  • Description: This civil society dialogue will discuss the progress made by China, the European Union and the United States in addressing climate change, including the financial and technological support provided by these parties to low-income developing countries, and how civil society cooperation can contribute to addressing the key issues highlighted at COP28.
  • Hosted by Peking University Institute of Energy, Natural Resources Defense Council, E3G, iGDP
  • E3G speakers: 
    • Byford Tsang, Senior Policy Advisor
    • Lisa Fisher, Programme Leader, Clean Energy System
    • Laura Sabogal Reyes, Senior Policy Advisor









E3G experts are available for in-person background, quotes, and analysis

Dubai

Nick Mabey OBE (EN), co-CEO and co-founder, (climate diplomacy, foreign policy, macroeconomics)  
m: +44 (0)7949 768 771 | nick.mabey@e3g.org

Alden Meyer (EN), Senior Associate, (UNFCCC and G7/G20 dynamics, multilateral climate and clean energy diplomacy, mitigation ambition, climate finance, US policy and politics)  
m: +1-202-378-8619 | alden.meyer@e3g.org 

Tom Evans (EN), E3G Policy Advisor, (climate ambition, the Global Stocktake, UNFCCC processes and COP28, climate diplomacy & geopolitics)  
m: +44 (0) 7931 317 327 | tom.evans@e3g.org 

Alex Scott (EN), E3G Programme Lead, (climate diplomacy, climate finance, adaptation finance, loss and damage, COP28)  
m: +44 7482 750760 | alex.scott@e3g.org 

Ana Mulio Alvarez (EN, ES), E3G Researcher, (UNFCCC, loss and damage, adaptation) 
m: +32 490 000 514 / +34 639 916 760 | ana.mulio@e3g.org  

Leo Roberts (EN), E3G Programme Lead, (JETPs, coal phase-out, power sector transitions particularly Global South) 
m: +44 (0) 7908 664 334 | leo.roberts@e3g.org  

Anusha Mata (EN), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (fossil fuel transition, coal phase-out) 
m: +44 (0)7817 560 411 | anusha.mata@e3g.org 

Kate Levick (EN), E3G Associate Director and Co-Head of the Transition Plan Taskforce Secretariat, (International and UK sustainable finance, public and private sector finance, financial initiatives, climate disclosure, transition planning, financial regulation, non state actor accountability)
m: +44 (0) 7860 861225 | kate.levick@e3g.org 

Jurei Yada (EN, FR, PL, JP), E3G Programme Lead, (EU sustainable finance, ESG, EU regulations including sustainability reporting standards) 
m: +32 (0)4 92 11 38 68 | jurei.yada@e3g.org  

Tsvetelina Kuzmanova (EN, BG, KR), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (EU sustainable finance, taxonomies, mandatory disclosure regulation) 
m: +32 (0) 483 989 651 | tsvetelina.kuzmanova@e3g.org    

Laura Sabogal Reyes (EN, ES, DE), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (Public banks – multilateral development banks, bilateral development banks – Paris Alignment, climate finance, nature finance, innovative financial mechanisms, E3G Public Bank Climate Tracker Matrix website) 
m: +49 160 96466368 | laura.sabogal@e3g.org

Dileimy Orozco (EN, ES), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (development banks and private finance, green recovery, debt burden, IFA reforms)  
m: +44 7876 301 615 | dile.orozco@e3g.org 

Lisa Fischer (EN, DE), E3G Programme Lead, (gas, energy diplomacy & geopolitics, renewables, fossil fuels)  
m: +44 (0)7710 167 754 | lisa.fischer@e3g.org  

Ignacio Arroniz Velasco (EN, FR, ES), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (EU climate diplomacy and foreign policy, trade & climate, climate & security nexus) 
m: +34 (0) 689 768 246 / +32 (0) 497 491 492 | ignacio.arroniz@e3g.org  

Byford Tsang (EN, CN), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (China, including domestic and international climate pledges, EU-China relations)
m: +44 (0) 7508 759 872 | byford.tsang@e3g.org

E3G Offices

Johanna Lehne (EN, DE), E3G Programme Lead, (Industry decarbonisation including steel, industrial policy, circular economy, built environment, trade policy) 
m: +44 (0) 770 848 6383 |  johanna.lehne@e3g.org    

Jonny Peters (EN), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (trade, CBAM) 
m: +44 (0) 7954 201 039 |  jonny.peters@e3g.org 

Larissa Gross (EN), E3G Programme Lead, (sustainable cooling, clean heat, energy efficiency)  
m: +44 (0) 7712 537 874 | larissa.gross@e3g.org 

Maria Pastukhova (EN, DE, JA, RU), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (international energy diplomacy, geopolitics of the energy transition, methane) 
m: +49 (0) 160 901 67735 | maria.pastukhova@e3g.org   

Camilla Fenning (EN), E3G Programme Lead, (coal phase-out, international coal transition, financing coal exit, fossil fuel transition)
m: +44 7961 047 835 | camilla.fenning@e3g.org 

Franklin Steves (EN, RU, SP, FR), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (international financial architecture reform, Bridgetown Initiative, CAF reform, climate finance) 
m: +44 7484 815 434 | franklin.steves@e3g.org 

Ronan Palmer (EN), E3G Associate Director, (financing the clean economy, Bridgetown Initiative, debt, fiscal space, public banks, international development) 
m: +353 89 491 7948 | ronan.palmer@e3g.org   

Sima Kammourieh (EN, FR, DE, AR), E3G Programme Lead, (international financial regulation and standards, G7/G20 finance ministers) 
m: +49 (0) 160 9596 4443 | sima.kammourieh@e3g.org 

Heather McKay (EN), E3G Senior Policy Advisor, (UK sustainable finance, the UK Net Zero Strategy) 
m: +44 7707 275 359 | heather.mckay@e3g.org

Juan Pablo Osornio (EN, DE, SP, FR), E3G Programme Lead, (international rules, standards and regulations for global decarbonisation) 
m: +49 (0) 151 1676 2877 | juanpablo.osornio@e3g.org 

Related

UNHQ
Media briefings
E3G media briefing: state of play after UNGA and NYCW
Flags of all nations outside the UN in New York City.
Press releases
UNGA Highlights Urgent Need for Bold Climate Leadership 

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