COP28: The world needs to triple up on renewables

Against the dramatic backdrop of accelerating global warming, the UN Climate Conference, COP28 starts in United Arab Emirates this week. Statkraft’s main message is that we need to triple the renewable capacity. Rapid deployment of wind and solar power is the fastest and cheapest ways to reduce global emissions towards 2030.

Statkraft is part of Norway’s Business Delegation to the conference, Team Norway. Norway at COP 28 (businessnorway.com) and will be represented by CEO Christian Rynning-Tønnesen?and?Executive Vice President for International Business, Ingeborg Dårflot. They?will attend numerous events, focusing on relevant aspects of how to scale up the renewable transition. 

Some of our key events: 

• A panel on strategies to get the world on track for net zero emissions by 2050, with?Dr. Fatih Birol,?Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) and Prime Minister?Jonas Gahr Støre
• A session on sustainable hydropower as the backbone of low carbon economies bolstered by renewable energy, with?Francesco la Camera,?Director General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
• A roundtable with?Ditte Juul Jørgensen, Director General, DG Energy, European Commission
• A seminar on hydropower’s role in tripling renewable capacity, organised with EDF Renewables

STATKRAFT’S KEY MESSAGES AT COP

• Pivoting from fossil fuels:?To halt climate change and limiting global warming to 1.5°C, greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced to net zero. Policymakers, the private sector, industries, and financial institutions must accelerate a pivot from fossil fuels to renewable energy and pursue widespread decarbonization across all end-use sectors.
• Tripling renewable capacity:?Rapid deployment of wind and solar power is the fastest and cheapest ways to reduce global emissions towards 2030. To reach a goal of tripled capacity by 2030, we need to build 11,000 GW of renewable energy by 2030, mainly solar and wind. Statkraft’s strategy will contribute to this, with an annual development rate of 4 GW of solar, wind and batteries by 2030. Our analyses show that falling cost of renewable energy makes the cost of increasing ambitions relatively low.
• Carbon markets and carbon taxes needs to be part of the policy response.?Energy and carbon markets will make the transition more efficient and hence more powerful. Whilst markets alone are not sufficient, minimizing the cost will also be key for a just transition.
• International cooperation:?Climate change is a global problem and can be best solved through international cooperation. Lack of global coordination will give a slower and more expensive transition. Whilst we need to develop green European value chains, we warn against increasing protectionism.
• The Paris agreement clearly states that countries have a common but differentiated responsibility for climate change and that?nationally determined contributions should be reflecting its common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances.?Statkraft fully agrees with this principle. 

Providing pure energy

Statkraft is a leading company in hydropower internationally and Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy. The Group produces hydropower, wind power, solar power, gas-fired power and supplies district heating. Statkraft is a global company in energy market operations. Statkraft has 5,700 employees in 21 countries.