EU speeches at the opening of the COP29 Climate Summit

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Thank you very much to the incoming COP Presidency for hosting us.

Let me thank all of you for joining us today for this Ministerial Dialogue, co-chaired by the COP28 and COP29 Presidencies and the European Commission.

We realised that in Dubai last year we managed to cover new ground.

We agreed that the age of fossil fuels simply must come to an end.

And we committed to what many including myself view as a bold course: tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030.

To me this commitment has always been 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 already than the dirtier alternatives.

Meeting these targets would cut global greenhouse gas emissions by 10 billion tonnes by the end of this decade — to put it into perspective that is more than the European Union’s total emissions over three years.

It is a very ambitious vision, but it can be done. In Europe, last year, we reduced our emissions by 8% and that was thanks to a rapid expansion in the domain of renewables.

Today, over half of Europe’s electricity comes from wind and solar, surpassing all fossil fuels combined.

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.

Now we must accelerate and we must turn our clean energy goals into tangible projects on every continent and in every of our economies.

Let me briefly focus on three areas where we can achieve more together.

I will start by looking into the energy grids.

Tripling renewables and electrifying the world will require substantial grid upgrades.

The International Energy Agency projects we need 25 million kilometres of new and improved grid lines by the end of this decade.

Europe is investing in this through our 300 billion euro Global Gateway strategy, which it meant for the world at large.

That means we are concretely funding critical grid projects worldwide, from modernising infrastructure in Nepal to building new high-voltage transmission lines connecting Ecuador and Peru. This scope is global and broader than that.

Second domain, critical minerals.

To power the grid with clean technologies, we need a stable and, ethical supply of minerals.

Lithium, cobalt, and rare earths are the backbone of batteries, turbines, and solar panels.

The assessment is that global demand for these minerals is set to triple by 2030, and for some, like lithium, demand could increase fortyfold by 2040.

Huge and something we do have to take into account.

Mining and processing these resources must be done in a way that is sustainable and benefits local communities.

As co-chair of the UN Panel on Critical Energy Transition Minerals,

Europe is committed to setting high standards for our supply chains.

For instance in Europe, we have received 170 proposals from projects worldwide, which are focused on production, refining, and recycling.

Only those that do meet our environmental and social standards will receive support.

This is how we create a real opportunity for production countries and for their people to benefit from the riches in their land.

Third and finally, investment.

Renewables, grids, and minerals all need substantial investment.

Europe is and will continue to be the world’s largest provider of climate finance, with over 31 billion dollars in public finance in 2023.

But public financing alone cannot do the heavy lifting.

We need to make sure that private sector financing comes in, that it scales up and matches the urgency of this transition we all face.

Today, 760 million people still lack access to electricity, most of them are from Sub-Saharan Africa – a region with vast clean energy potential.

It is our joint task to support them in reducing capital costs to make sure and allow the transition everywhere across the globe.

President von der Leyen will announce together with South Africa and Global Citizen a new initiative on this next week at the G20 leaders’ summit.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Tripling renewables, doubling energy efficiency — these are ambitious targets, they can and will make a real difference if we live up to them.

Reaching them will cut our dependence on fossil fuels and bring us much closer to net-zero.

But up to us to make sure we do manage this transition well, so that everyone can harness the benefits of the clean energy revolution. That is the name of the game.

We need to create a space for continuous dialogue, and here you can count on Europe.

I now like to invite our esteemed ministerial and private sector speakers to share their projects, thoughts and goals.

Thank you very much.

Source – EU Commission