Oil Change International responds to IEA head singling out coal phasedown
“As the head of the IEA, Mr. Birol should know the time to focus only on coal as a climate culprit is over. We need a full, fast, fair, funded phase out of all fossil fuels. Setting such a low bar for ambition is out of touch and inequitable, keeping the door wide open for major oil and gas producers.”
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Contact:
Nicole Rodel, Oil Change International – nicole@priceofoil.org
Oil Change International responds to IEA head singling out coal phasedown
27 June 2024 – This week, head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, called for countries’ updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to “include no new unabated coal and also early retirements of existing coal”.
In Birol’s address, no mention was made of all governments’ agreement to transition away from fossil fuels, as civil society also noted at recent UN climate talks in Bonn. This is despite the IEA confirming there is no room for new oil, gas, or coal – and some existing fields will need to be closed early – to remain within the internationally agreed upon temperature limit.
In response, Romain Ioualalen, Global Policy lead at Oil Change International, said:
“As the head of the IEA, Mr. Birol should know the time to focus only on coal as a climate culprit is over. We need a full, fast, fair, funded phase out of all fossil fuels. Setting such a low bar for ambition is out of touch and inequitable, keeping the door wide open for major oil and gas producers.
“The IEA said so themselves: limiting warming to 1.5°C means no new oil, gas, or coal. This is the minimum ambition that must be reflected in the climate plans countries submit to fulfill their promises made in Dubai. There is no such thing as a 1.5°C-aligned NDC that does not explicitly end fossil fuel expansion.
“In answer to Birol’s question of who is going to pay for a just energy transition – the money has always been there. The rich countries most responsible for this crisis must pay up for a fair fossil fuel phase-out and climate damages, without worsening unjust debts. We know they have more than enough money. It’s just going to the wrong things like fossil fuel handouts.”