‘UAE planned to use COP28 to advance oil and gas deals’

LONDON/DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) planned to exploit meetings with foreign governments arranged due to its COP28 hosting role to strike fossil fuel deals, according to leaked documents obtained by the BBC.

The leaked briefing notes, obtained by journalists at the Centre for Climate Reporting (CCR) working alongside the British broadcaster, were prepared by the UAE’s COP28 team for summit president Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber ahead of meetings with foreign governments between July and October this year.

CCR said it worked with the BBC to verify the authenticity of the documents, which it said were leaked by a whistleblower anonymously for fear of retaliation. It published a portion of the documents — 46 of 150 pages.

Leaked “talking points” prepared for a meeting with China said that ADNOC, the UAE’s state oil company, was “willing to jointly evaluate international LNG (liquefied natural gas) opportunities” in Mozambique, Canada and Australia.

Briefing notes prepared for meetings with Colombia, Germany and Egypt suggested that ADNOC “stands ready” to support each country develop fossil fuel projects.

ADNOC is also seeking Brazil’s help to secure endorsement for a non-binding offer it made with private equity firm Apollo for a controlling stake in petrochemical producer Braksem.

“Securing alignment and endorsement for the deal at the highest level is important for us,” the documents said in a page prepared for a potential discussion with Brazil’s Environment Minister, Marina Silva.

“There are many synergies between the UAE and Brazil — with both countries looking to exploit their hydrocarbon resources responsibly,” another section said.

The documents showed the UAE prepared talking points for meetings with 20 countries, including the United States, UK and Germany, on commercial opportunities for state renewable energy company Masdar.

COP28 president Al Jaber is also CEO of ADNOC and Masdar.

A COP28 spokesperson told AFP that the documents cited by the BBC “are inaccurate and were not used by COP28 in meetings. It is extremely disappointing to see the BBC use unverified documents in their reporting”.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the body responsible for the COP28 summit, which starts on Thursday, told the BBC that the “cardinal principle” for hosts was “the obligation of impartiality”.

Climate campaigners have raised concerns about the influence of fossil fuel interests at the talks in Dubai, noting Jaber’s role as head of an oil company.

In an interview with AFP on Saturday, Jaber defended the large presence of heavy emitting industries including the oil and gas sector.

“Everyone needs to be part of this process and everyone needs to be held responsible and everyone needs to be held accountable,” he said.

Jaber has presented himself as a mediator between both sides of the fossil fuel divide, with a healthy desire to include the oil and gas industry in the climate debate.

COP28, which will be held until December 12, is due to be attended by 167 world leaders, including King Charles III and Pope Francis.

The climate summit will be the first global assessment of progress since the landmark Paris Agreement in 2015, which set a goal of limiting global warming to well below 2°C, while aiming for a cap of 1.5°C.

Climate scientists have said achieving that goal depends on phasing out fossil fuels.

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