COP28 Promises Are Already In Tatters
But we can still remedy the situation.
Last year’s COP28 was a bit of a mixed bag. Many climate scientists decried the event as ineffective, not going far enough to implement the climate legislation we desperately need before it is too late and our delicate planet is destroyed, presuming after all it is not already too late. But, on the other hand, there were some major milestone agreements. For example, nearly 200 countries committed to tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030 — the most significant commitment to clean energy ever! This was one of the only silver linings of the event, yet a recent report by IRENA shows that even this agreement lies in ruin.
Over the past year, the world has seen a record uptick in renewables, mainly solar. In fact, renewables now account for more than 30% of the world’s electricity supply. However, IRENA recently revealed that, even with this record expansion, we are set to fall 34% short of our 2030 tripling renewable capacity goals! That is a considerable gap.
IRENA pointed out that solar power is growing fast enough to meet this target but that the other forms of renewable energy are falling short. Namely, onshore wind needs to triple, offshore wind needs to grow by six times, and geothermal needs to grow by 35 times compared to their 2023 level to hit this target, and this simply isn’t happening.
So, the question has to be asked: can we rectify this?
IRENA found that in order to meet this target, we need to invest $1.5 trillion in renewables annually until 2030. Currently, we are only investing the equivalent of a third of that each year, so if anything, it is a miracle we are seeing the results we are seeing, even if they aren’t yet substantial enough. IRENA also found that this investment isn’t going to the right places, with 84% going to the US, EU, and China, and other more carbon-intense countries, such as India, UAE, and Australia, hardly investing in renewables.
There are many complex reasons for this investment disparity, from global geopolitical to local government ties to the fossil fuel industry. Nonetheless, for us to hit this target, renewable investment needs to be more equally distributed.
But there is the looming question of funds. Is there even $1.5 trillion per year available to invest in renewables? I mean, that is a staggeringly large sum of money.
Well, in 2022, worldwide governments gave the fossil fuel industry a total of $1.7 trillion in subsidies, investments, and tax breaks. This doesn’t include the hundreds of millions of dollars banks invest in the fossil fuel industry each year or the further hundreds of millions of dollars fossil fuel companies invest in their own growth annually.
In short, there is more than enough money available to meet this renewable target; it’s just not going to the right places.
Ultimately, there is no reason for banks, governments, or fossil fuel companies to spend their trillions this way. Fossil fuels will have to be phased out entirely by 2050, and oil is set to run out in 30–40 years anyway. As such, these investments can only have a short-term return. But this investment is powering the destruction of our planet, which will, in turn, destroy our economies, making these investments practically worthless.
They could put this same money into renewables, which will protect the planet, boost our economy, increase our energy security, and even ease international tensions. Not only that, but many renewables are now more profitable than fossil fuels!
So, I ask of you: why aren’t we saving the world and making a tidy profit in the process?
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Sources: IRENA, Politico, IEC, Climate Change News, The Guardian, IISD, Planet Earth & Beyond