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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s largest oil producers, said on Saturday it aims to achieve “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions by 2060, joining more than 100 countries in a global effort to stop people. announced. – climate change did.
While the kingdom will aim to reduce emissions within its borders, there are no signs that Saudi Arabia will slow down its oil and gas investments or relinquish its dominance of energy markets by turning away from fossil fuel production. Despite efforts to diversify income, energy exports form the backbone of the Saudi Arabian economy as the world increasingly moves away from dependence on fossil fuels. The country is expected to generate $150 billion in revenue from oil alone this year.
The announcement by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in written statements at the start of the kingdom’s first Saudi Green Initiative Forum was timed to make a splash before the start of the global COP26 climate conference, held in Glasgow, Scotland. The prince promised that by 2030, Saudi Arabia will plant 450 million trees and rehabilitate huge tracts of land, reduce carbon emissions by more than 270 million tons per year, and seek to transform the landlocked city of Riyadh into a more sustainable capital.
The kingdom joins the ranks of Russia and China in 2060, a net-zero target date. The United States and the European Union are targeting 2050.
Analysts say that while making the announcement, it ensures that the kingdom continues to sit at the table in global climate change negotiations. Saudi Arabia has backed off against those who say fossil fuels need to be phased out urgently, warning that an early switch could lead to price volatility and shortages. Recently leaked documents show how the kingdom and other nations lobbied behind the scenes to change the language about emissions ahead of the COP26 summit.
While transiting within the country, the kingdom could also take the oil and gas it subsidizes locally and allocate it as a more lucrative export to China and India, where demand is expected to increase in the coming years.
“The kingdom’s economic growth is driven by the export of energy resources. “This is not a state secret,” Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said at the forum in Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia says it will reach net zero with its “Carbon Circular Economy” approach, which advocates “reduce, reuse, recycle and remove”. It’s an unpopular strategy among climate change activists because it still highlights unreliable carbon capture and storage technologies rather than focusing on phasing out fossil fuels.
The announcement gave several details on how the kingdom will reduce its emissions in the short and medium term, including when it will peak its emissions. Experts say sharp cuts worldwide are needed as soon as possible to ensure the world has a chance to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) as agreed in the 2015 Paris agreement.
Home to roughly 17% of proven oil reserves, the kingdom supplies about 10% of global oil demand. As OPEC’s heavyweight, Saudi Arabia has a tremendous influence on energy markets and could pressure other producers to fall in line, as seen when the kingdom triggered a price war last year that prompted Russia to successfully shut down production amid the pandemic demand slowdown.
Saudi Arabia said the transition to net-zero carbon emissions would be accomplished “in a way that preserves the kingdom’s leading role in enhancing the security and stability of global energy markets”.
Gulf oil producers oppose the rapid phasing out of fossil fuels, saying a rapid transition will hurt low-income countries and populations without access to basic energy. Saudi Arabia also advocates language that refers to greenhouse gases, a basket that contains more than just fossil fuels.
“We believe that carbon capture, use and storage, direct air capture, hydrogen and low-carbon fuel are things that will develop the necessary components to make this effort truly inclusive,” said Prince Abdulaziz of the global energy transition.
Earlier this month, the United Arab Emirates, another major Gulf Arab energy producer, also announced that it will join the club of “net zero” nations by 2050. The UAE, which is home to the region’s first nuclear power plant, has not disclosed details on how this will be done. will achieve this goal.
Leaked documents, first reported by the BBC, show Saudi Arabia and other countries, including Australia, Brazil and Japan, apparently trying to soften an upcoming UN science panel report on global warming ahead of the COP26 summit. Greenpeace, which obtained the leaked documents, said Saudi Arabia is pushing carbon capture technology, enabling nations to continue burning fossil fuels. The group says these “as yet unproven technologies” will allow nations to emit more greenhouse gases, on the optimistic assumption that they can then be removed from the atmosphere.
Fossil fuels such as crude oil, natural gas and coal currently account for the bulk of global energy consumption. Only 10% of electricity is produced by solar energy and wind.
Prince Abdulaziz on Saturday said each country’s approach to reducing emissions will look different.
“Nobody should be too cynical about what car everyone will have in the kit,” he said. “But if your tools in your kit and mine provide emission reductions, that’s the question and the point,” he said.
Among those attending the Riyadh forum was Prince Charles of England. In virtual statements, he drew attention to how the temperatures of the Middle East were rising and threatening the livability of the region.
President Joe Biden’s climate ambassador, John Kerry, is expected to meet with officials in Riyadh on Sunday and Monday and take part in the three-day forum.
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Associated Press writer Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed to this report.
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Follow Aya Batrawy on twitter at https://twitter.com/ayaelb.
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