CNN —
The United Arab Emirates has appointed the boss of one of the world’s biggest oil producers to chair the UN climate summit COP28, a move activists have warned could undermine this year’s world conference.
Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, will chair COP28, which takes place in Dubai on November 30th. Political leaders and representatives from more than 190 countries will gather to discuss how to put the world on track to meet the Paris Climate Agreement goal of limiting temperature rises to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
In announcing Al Jaber’s appointment, the UAE praised his climate credentials, including his position as the country’s climate change officer and his role as founder of renewable energy company Masdar.
“The UAE approaches COP28 with a strong sense of responsibility and the highest possible ambition,” Al Jaber said in a statement.
The United Arab Emirates, a major oil producer, has pledged to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, meaning it would remove at least as much environment-warming pollution from the atmosphere as it emits.
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair welcomed the appointment.
“I am confident that Dr. Sultan has both the standing and the ability to offer groundbreaking leadership for COP28,” he said in a statement.
The appointment has prompted a backlash from some climate groups given the role fossil fuels play in driving climate change.
Climate organizations have said that Al Jaber’s appointment would undermine the ability to meet ambitious climate pledges, and some have called on Al Jaber to leave his job in the oil industry to take the post.
The appointment raises questions about the credibility of the UAE’s COP28 presidency, said Tom Evans, policy adviser at European climate change think tank E3G. “On the face of it, the head of a national oil company obviously faces a massive conflict of interest,” he told CNN.
Tasneem Essop, executive director of Climate Action Network International, said in a statement: “[Al Jaber] cannot, with such a conflict of interest, lead a process tasked with addressing the climate crisis and lead an industry that is responsible for the crisis itself.”
She added: “Unless he steps down as CEO [of Abu Dhabi National Oil Corporation]this becomes tantamount to a full coverage of the UN climate talks by a petrostate national oil company and its associated fossil fuel lobbyists.”
Last year’s COP27 ended with countries reaffirming a target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, but a proposal to phase out fossil fuels was blocked by the likes of China and Saudi Arabia. Climate advocates accused the fossil fuel industry of exerting outsized influence at the summit, which was attended by more than 600 fossil fuel lobbyists.
“For the summit hosts to be taken seriously as honest brokers of change, they must do everything possible to avoid a conflict of interest,” UK-based humanitarian group ActionAid said in a statement. “This is vital to the safety and security of our planet. Unfortunately, in that regard, COP28 looks like it got off to a bad start.”
Others, however, said Al Jaber’s appointment came as no surprise given that he has spearheaded the region’s renewable energy advocacy group.
“He was the CEO of Abu Dhabi’s Clean Energy Vehicle, he’s still Chairman of Masdar and he recently acquired a stake in the renewable energy and hydrogen business,” Robin Mills, CEO of Dubai-based energy consultancy Qamar Energy told Becky Anderson from CNN. “So what we’re seeing here is a thoughtful and long-term strategy and an energy diversity that emphasizes climate sustainability.”
Al Jaber, who according to the UAE is the first CEO to ever hold a COP presidency, said: “[COP28] will be a crucial moment to mobilize the political will to respond to what science is telling us must be achieved in order to stay on target and limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2050 limit.”