OPEC’s leader has “urgently” asked its 23 member countries and partners to “actively reject” any agreement at COP28 talks that mentions fossil fuels instead of cutting harmful gas emissions.
According to a letter sent to members and allies of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which includes Portuguese-speaking Angola and Equatorial Guinea, and soon Brazil, the cartel’s secretary general calls on member delegations attending COP28 to “actively reject any text or language related to energy, that is, fossil fuels, not greenhouse gas emissions.
In a letter dated Wednesday, quoted by the French news agency France-Presse (AFP), OPEC Secretary-General Haitham al-Ghais wrote: “It appears that excessive and disproportionate pressure on fossil fuels may reach a critical point with irreversible consequences, since the Draft Decision still contains options for phasing out fossil fuels,” writes the person in charge.
“While member countries and their partners take climate change seriously (…), it would be unacceptable for politically motivated campaigns to jeopardize the prosperity and future of our people,” the letter, addressed to 13 OPEC members and 10 others, further said. allied countries.
OPEC representatives did not immediately respond to AFP’s message.
According to activist Andreas Sieber of the non-governmental organization 350.org, “OPEC’s desperate resistance to phasing out fossil fuels shows its fears that the situation is changing, as is now evident in the discussions at COP28”, whose presidency is held by the chairman of the UAE National Oil Company, Sultan Al- Jaber continues to be the subject of serious criticism.
Al-Jaber is under scrutiny “to see whether he will negotiate a just transition agreement or whether he will allow himself to be influenced by Saudi Arabia and the oil industry,” the activist added.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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