Meed | UAE finds its green voice

UAE finds its green voice

6 March 2023

Commentary

Colin Foreman

Editor

When the Paris Agreement, which aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, was drafted during the 21st Conference of the Parties (Cop21) in Paris in late 2015, there was a fear that the energy transition could leave the region behind.

As the conference began, Brent crude prices were just below $44 a barrel and Opec’s ability to influence oil markets had been smashed by shale producers in North America.

Many speculated that the oil-exporting economies, despite their efforts to develop renewables, were dinosaurs rapidly facing extinction.

Since then, the global economy has been disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Oil prices have rebounded sharply, and investment in renewables and new technology such as hydrogen means the region is now playing an active role in the fight against climate change.

That role was amplified by the UAE’s successful bid to host Cop28 this year.

The UAE says it is well-positioned to lead the talks. Economically, the country is affluent but only recently developed, which means it can understand the concerns of both the established countries of the Global North and the emerging economies of the Global South. It can also bridge the political divide between east and west, a fissure that has widened following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Crucially, the UAE sees an important role for hydrocarbons in an orderly transition – an unpalatable argument for many climate change activists.

Divergent opinions mean the UAE’s role has already begun to be scrutinised. Its decision in January to name Abu Dhabi National Oil Company Group CEO Sultan al-Jaber as the president of Cop28 led to an international backlash.

The onus is now on the UAE. If it can achieve real progress in the fight against climate change, much of the criticism will appear unjustified.