COP29 host Azerbaijan cabinets fossil-fuelled local weather fund

The Azerbaijan COP29 presidency scrapped the launch of a brand new local weather fund with anticipated contributions from fossil gas producers throughout the summit because the initiative risked interfering with negotiations over the post-2025 local weather finance aim.

The COP29 hosts had deliberate to unveil the Local weather Finance Motion Fund (CFAF) – one in every of their most controversial flagship initiatives – at a “excessive stage” occasion to coincide with the convention’s finance day on Thursday.

However the presidency quietly dropped the occasion whereas placing the initiative on maintain till the tip of COP29.

A supply close to the COP presidency instructed Local weather Dwelling Information that the fund was deprioritised because of dangers that it will intervene with negotiations on the brand new local weather finance aim – the principle consequence of the summit.

When Local weather Dwelling requested Azerbaijan’s lead negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev about it, he stated that the COP hosts have established a working group to “work out an idea that will be workable and acceptable” for donor international locations all for becoming a member of the initiative.

He added that it’s “a really advanced course of to determine a brand new fund” however that they’ve seen “an awesome curiosity” by the potential contributors from growing and developed international locations.

‘Getting snarled’ with NCQG

A COP29 supply who didn’t need to be named instructed Local weather Dwelling that the presidency determined to deprioritise the initiative quickly because it was getting snarled with the negotiations over the brand new collective quantified aim (NCQG).

Governments are locked in tense discussions over a bunch of points, together with the scale of the aim and who needs to be contributing in direction of it.

The supply stated that potential donors from growing international locations have been significantly nervous that pitching cash into Azerbaijan’s fund now can be seen as a precedent that may very well be used to push them to contribute to the NCQG as effectively. On high of this, developed international locations might need counted any contributions into the CFAF in direction of their local weather finance share, the COP29 supply added.

The CFAF seeks to boost at the very least $1 billion and will grow to be operational when at the very least 10 international locations commit cash to the automobile, in response to the COP29 presidency. It’s meant to channel funding “primarily” in direction of growing international locations to assist them shift to wash power, enhance power effectivity and enhance local weather resilience.

The initiative would primarily give out cash at business lending charges with solely a fifth of its revenues being reinvested right into a facility offering “extremely concessional and grant-based help” to weak international locations.

COP president Mukhtar Babayev known as the fund “a major step” in July when the concept was first floated. “We’ve heard that communities need motion not phrases,” he stated then.

‘Greenwashing fund’

Local weather campaigners have reacted positively to the postponement of the fund. They’ve beforehand criticised it as a distraction from efforts to make fossil gas producers pay enough reparations for the local weather disaster they’re primarily chargeable for.

Whereas the COP29 presidency insists that the fund will go forward quickly, Andreas Sieber, affiliate director of coverage and campaigns at 350.org, stated it will be no loss for the planet if it ended up being scrapped completely.

“The presidency’s fossil gas fund was a distraction and a greenwashing fund,” he instructed Local weather Dwelling. “Placing cash right into a fund whereas increasing fossil fuels basically means pretending to place out a hearth whereas feeding it extra gas”.

At COP29, Azerbaijan had additionally been anticipated to announce a brand new nationwide local weather plan – often called a nationally decided contribution (NDC) – but it surely has but to take action.