The Ukraine War has shown that governments can act quickly to shift energy sources when they focus. “What’s interesting to me is that while collectively we have not been able to mobilise to fight climate change in a timely manner, the energy crisis in Europe has shown that we are able to mobilise quite quickly when national security is at stake,” says Joana Freitas, a member of the board at Portuguese electricity utility EDP Generation. She spoke to Energy Monitor on the margins of the COP27 climate summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, about her expectations for climate action and the potential for electrification to bring down emissions.
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Freitas pointed out that $110bn a year has gone into coal subsidies over the past ten years – $10bn more than the annual climate finance pledge that developed nations promised to developing nations in 2009 and have subsequently failed to deliver. “If we would have stopped subsidising coal and used that cash to help developing nations transition to green energy, we would still have $10bn a year to play with,” she noted. Freitas also chairs the Generation and Environment Committee of the Brussels-based electricity association Eurelectric. She was at COP27 to discuss with delegates what can be done to encourage electrification.
Climate action beyond electrification at COP27:
Reporter Nour Ghantous and senior writer Dave Keating reported from COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, on behalf of Energy Monitor and our parent company, GlobalData. They provided the data-led analysis you have come to expect from Energy Monitor but also something new: video interviews with business leaders, policymakers and campaigners. We encourage you to browse our coverage of the conference. You can also sign up for our free biweekly newsletter here.
COP27 coverage includes:
See Also:
Climate action in tourism: Iberostar intends to be net zero by 2030, by Dave Keating (25 November)
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