Arguing for a balanced approach to net zero that will see the continued use of fossil fuels, President Irfaan Ali yesterday said that Guyana is working towards surpassing 80% reliance on renewable energy by 2030.
He was speaking at the 78th session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly yesterday in New York, USA under the theme “Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity: accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals towards peace, prosperity, progress and sustainability for all Creating a Just and Equitable World”.
The President argued that the global ambition of net zero by 2050 is not currently realistic given the cost of transition and the financing commitments thus far. His prognosis came on the same day that UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres railed against the “naked greed” of fossil fuel interests.
In his address to the General Assembly, the Head of State said that Guyana is using revenue from oil and gas resources to finance its transition to renewable energy, notwithstanding its globally recognized net zero status.
“Allow me to expound on the critical question of a just, affordable and equitable transition. Bloomberg estimates that achieving global net zero emissions by 2050 requires annual investments to more than triple from the 2021 level to 6.7 trillion dollars per year”, he said.
The Head of State is convinced that multilateralism is the most effective approach towards addressing challenges such as climate change and food insecurity
“We are all experiencing its devastating effects. The difference, however, is our capacity to respond. It is well established that those bearing the brunt of the climate phenomena have made no contribution to the current crisis.
He reported that Small Island Developing and low-lying coastal States like Guyana are among the countries adversely affected by climate change and require adequate financing to address the associated effects.
Ali noted that the commitments by developed countries, including the pledge of US$100 billion per year to aid in this regard however remains unfulfilled.
“How much longer must developing countries wait for these commitments to be fully delivered? he questioned.
Although at net zero emissions, Guyana continues to pursue growth premised on a Low Carbon Development Strategy and is steadfast at ensuring that our all resources are utilized sustainably to foster inclusive and equitable development for our people, according to Ali.
“More than 90 countries have committed to net zero emissions. To achieve this, the IEA (International Energy Agency) estimates that by 2050 more than eighty-five percent of buildings must be zero carbon ready, more than 90 percent heavy industrial production must be low emissions and almost 70 percent of electricity will have to come from solar photovoltaic”, he said.
Ali added that “Based on these targets, the renewable share in the generation of electricity will have to increase from 29% in 2020 to 88% by 2050. Meanwhile to remove carbon from the atmosphere, the world will need to simultaneously halt deforestation and increase tree cover gain 2 times faster by 2030”.
Against this background the President estimated that by 2050, 7.6 gigatons of (Carbon Dioxide) Co2 will have to be captured and stored compared to 0.4 gigatons in 2020 and informed that according to McKinsey and Company, it would cost $375 trillion dollars in cumulative spending on physical assets to transition to net zero by 2050.
Ali said that the global ambition of net zero by 2050 is not currently realistic, given the cost of transition and the financing commitments thus far.
“I say all of this not to reduce ambition but for us to honestly and frankly direct our energies to a more balanced approach towards net zero in a realistic environment”.
He said that Guyana is blessed with the best of both worlds, that is, the ability to lead on climate change and the use of our expansive oil and gas reserves to contribute to the advancement and development of our country and region.
Ali said that the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP 28) slated for November 30 to December 12 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) will not achieve the desired objectives of definitively putting the planet on a net zero trajectory, unless there is a different approach.
“Given the growth in demand for energy, a significant part of that demand will come from many in the developing world who continue to live in energy poverty.
It is also a fact that renewables will not meet the growth of demand in the near future.
If the debate at COP 28 is framed by two camps: one calling for no cuts in fossil fuel production, including the most polluting form such as coal, and the other saying that the only solution to net zero is an end to fossil fuel production, then “we will fail once again to achieve a viable outcome, and not to give our world the energy it needs to grow and prosper”, the Head of State said.
He opined that net zero by 2050 as a target can only be achieved by a combination of measures that include: a cut in fossil fuel production; incentivizing the introduction of renewables at scale; exploring advances in technology in using carbon capture and storage; cutting deforestation and land degradation and lastly introducing measures to curb demand for energy.
