More Than 100 US, EU Politicians Want Oil CEO Removed as COP28 Head - Yahoo News

More Than 100 US, EU Politicians Want Oil CEO Removed as COP28 Head

(Bloomberg) -- More than 100 US and EU lawmakers appealed to the leaders of their countries and the United Nations to oust oil executive Sultan Al Jaber as head of this year’s COP28 climate summit.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Carl Icahn Is $15 Billion Poorer After Hunter Becomes the Hunted
McCarthy Says Debt Deal Remains Elusive as Negotiations Resume
China’s $23 Trillion Local Debt Mess Is About to Get Worse
Saudi Energy Minister Tells Oil Speculators to ‘Watch Out’
China’s New Covid Wave Set to See 65 Million Cases a Week

Read More: A Kingdom Built on Oil Now Controls the World’s Climate ProgressThe politicians also asked that further steps be taken to limit the influence of fossil-fuel companies at the talks to be hosted by the United Arab Emirates at the end of the year. The appointment of Al Jaber, who runs state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., to lead a conference whose goal is to increase global action to cut carbon emissions, has been controversial from the start.

The letter was addressed to US President Joe Biden, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and UN’s climate chief Simon Stiell. It was signed by 99 EU and 34 US lawmakers.

“For billions of people, the outcome of COP28 and following international climate negotiations will make the difference between life and death, chaos and solidarity,” said Manon Aubry, a member of the European Parliament and one of the signatories. “Corporate greed and lobbyists' lies have led us into this climate crisis. We must prevent private interests from interfering in politics and regain ownership of our future.”

This isn’t the first concerted effort to remove Al Jaber. In January, more than two dozen US lawmakers called on the country’s climate envoy John Kerry to apply diplomatic pressure on the UAE to replace him as COP28 chief. In February, green EU lawmakers also made the same case in a letter addressed to UN’s Stiell.

Under Al Jaber, Adnoc is set to boost oil and gas production, which is something the International Energy Agency and climate scientists agree could cause the world to blow past limits for global warming set through the COP process. Al Jaber is also chairman of state-owned renewable energy company Masdar.

In response to the letter, the organizers of COP28 have given support to Al Jaber. “We believe that Dr. Sultan’s experience as an engineer, working across the energy spectrum, coupled with his experience as a senior global industry leader, are assets that will help drive the UAE’s transformative approach to COP28,” a spokesperson said in an e-mailed statement.

Listen to a conversation between Bloomberg Green’s Aaron Rutkoff and Akshat Rathi on the Zero podcast about Sultan Al Jaber’s leadership of COP28.

(Adds comment from COP28 organizers in last paragraph)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

The Man Who Spends $2 Million a Year to Look 18 Is Swapping Blood With His Father and Son
Maasai Are Getting Pushed Off Their Land So Dubai Royalty Can Shoot Lions
Apple’s New Headset Meets Reality
Industrials Defy Deal Doldrums With Strategic Acquisitions
Japan’s New Military Might Is Rising in a Factory in Hiroshima

©2023 Bloomberg L.P.