IEA at COP28

The IEA is a key contributor to the upcoming 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), which will take place under the Presidency of the United Arab Emirates from 30 November to 12 December 2023 in Dubai. 

As the global authority on energy, with 31 member countries and 13 association countries from around the world, the IEA delivers expert analysis, data, policy advice and real-world solutions to bolster global efforts to tackle climate change and accelerate progress towards a more secure, sustainable and equitable energy future.

 The IEA’s objectives at COP28 include:

• Helping countries formulate goals and implement actions consistent with net zero emissions in the energy sector by 2050;
• Supporting energy transitions that put people at the centre and are aligned with the achievement of SDG 7 objectives, including universal access to energy by 2030;
• Sharing insights, reports and expertise to support the First Global Stocktake (GST) after the Paris Agreement, and helping countries reach their nationally determined contributions (NDCs), as well as other energy and climate commitments and long-term objectives; 
• Strengthening engagement with key countries and stakeholders through interactions with experts from international organisations, government agencies, the private sector, non-governmental organisations, media and civil society.

Through our World Energy Outlook 2023, the recently updated Net Zero Roadmap and the Breakthrough Agenda Report 2023, the IEA has detailed what is needed for governments, companies, investors and citizens to decarbonise the energy sector and put emissions on a path in line with a temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

Climate change is a global challenge and a key priority for the IEA

2023 will likely be the warmest year on record, and carbon dioxide emissions remain stubbornly high. But clean energy progress has kept open the possibility of limiting warming to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels, the target established by the Paris Agreement. Solar energy has boomed, with global capacity expanding by nearly 1 terawatt since 2015. Electric car purchases have also skyrocketed: One of every five cars sold globally in 2023 is electric. Reaching net zero by 2050, however, requires more action.

At the International Climate and Energy Summit held in Madrid in early October, the IEA put forward five objectives for a successful COP28:

1. Support the tripling of renewable energy capacity by 2030;
2. Aim to double the rate of global energy intensity improvements by 2030;
3. Ensure the orderly decline of the use of fossil fuels;
4. Recognise that scaled-up investment is required;
5. Highlight the critical role of, and opportunity for, the fossil fuel industry to reduce methane emissions from their operations, with the aim of cutting them 75% by 2030.

To enable these changes, IEA models show that clean energy investment needs to reach USD 4.5 trillion a year by the early 2030s. The IEA’s Global Energy Transitions Stocktake summarizes global progress towards building a clean energy economy and presents what still needs to be done to reach net zero emissions by mid-century.

To keep the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C alive, the IEA will share its insights and expertise through a wide range of events at COP28. IEA data, analysis and solutions provide support and guidance for countries on their energy transition pathways by:

• Helping countries understand the global state-of-play, as well as opportunities and challenges in the energy space, using its statistics and tracking mechanisms, such as Tracking Clean Energy Progress, Breakthrough Agenda Report, the World Energy Investment 2023 report, the ETP Clean Technology Guide, the Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Energy Data Explorer, and the Clean Energy Demonstrations Projects Database;
• Outlining sustainable energy transition pathways in publications such as the World Energy Outlook 2023, the updated Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Roadmap, Energy Technology Perspectives 2023, the Oil and Gas Decarbonization report, Global EV Outlook 2023 and the Scaling Up Private Finance for Clean Energy in Emerging and Developing Economies report;
• Supporting innovation in pursuit of net-zero energy sector emissions, and providing global expertise on technologies and materials essential to clean energy transitions, including critical minerals and hydrogen;
• Providing tailored analyses for regions, such as in the Financing Clean Energy in Africa report and the Latin American Energy Outlook, as well as for emerging and developing economies more broadly.

Please note all event times below are in Paris time.

Dubai time is provided in the event description.