Birol: COP29 will deliver two crucial outcomes

The International Energy Agency (IEA) is collaborating with the Azerbaijani government on three groundbreaking proposals as part of global commitments to boost renewable energy capacity and enhance energy efficiency. This exciting development was revealed by IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol in an interview with Anadolu in London following the second high-level COP29-IEA meeting, according to Report.

Birol reminded that the commitments to triple global renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency, proposed by the IEA at last year's COP28 climate summit, were included in the final declaration. However, he emphasized that implementing these commitments requires tools such as financing.

"In this regard, we are currently working with the government of Azerbaijan on three new proposals for global commitments. The first one concerns batteries (energy storage systems). We are working to determine how much battery capacity should increase by 2030. The second is networks, and the third is reducing methane emissions in this region. We are proposing a commitment that will unite Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and other countries in this region under Azerbaijan's leadership. I can say that we will focus on these three issues before COP29," he said.

Birol stressed that these three issues will be the focus leading up to COP29, scheduled to take place in Baku in November 2024.

Another key topic of negotiations is clean energy financing. Birol highlighted that investments in this sector, especially in developing countries, need to increase sixfold.

"Developing countries alone require $2 trillion annually for clean energy financing," he stated. The IEA is working on developing a financing model and creating a concrete framework to address this challenge.

The second high-level COP29-IEA meeting saw active participation from representatives of the financial sector, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation, and private sector financial institutions.

Birol expressed optimism about the outcomes of COP29, predicting two significant results.

1. Universal adoption of the three global commitments mentioned.
2. An agreement on new financing targets and methods to achieve them.

According to him, the next meeting [on COP29] will take place within the framework of the UN General Assembly.

"Until then, we will work hard to come up with a concrete proposal. Azerbaijan considers us a strategic partner, we cooperate very closely. I think that COP29 will bring two important results. Firstly, everyone will accept the three global commitments I mentioned, and secondly, an agreement will be reached on new funding goals and ways to achieve them," he said.

The 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) will be held in Baku in November this year. This decision was made at the plenary session of COP28, which took place in Dubai on December 11, 2023.