Climate policy and UN Cop meetings
Overview
Argus provides key insights on how global climate policies will affect the global energy and commodity markets. We shine a light on decisions made at UN Cop meetings, which have far-reaching effects on the markets we serve. Progress at Cop 30 in Brazil will be crucial in transforming ambitions into actions aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Countries must produce new climate plans this year.
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News
Zambia to develop 300MW of new coal-fired capacity
Zambia to develop 300MW of new coal-fired capacity
London, 11 December (Argus) — Tanzanian conglomerate Amsons Group and Zambian energy firm Exergy Africa have announced a $900mn partnership to develop 1.3GW of generation capacity in Zambia. This will comprise 300MW of coal-fired capacity and 1GW of solar capacity, with $300mn and $600mn to be allocated to the respective energy sources in a bid to boost Zambia's energy security. Half of the new solar capacity is expected to be added to the grid within 18 months, with the full 300MW of coal-fired capacity and remaining 500MW of solar capacity to be installed within two years, according to Zambian energy minister Makozo Chikote. Zambia has recently turned to coal-fired power to reduce its dependence on hydropower, which accounts for around 85pc of the country's total electricity generation, given recent dry spells have caused water levels in Lake Kariba to fall below those sufficient for power generation. Kariba Dam levels remained near a record low this year, resulting in continual load-shedding after a severe drought in 2024 drained Lake Kariba. The country's only operational coal-fired plant, the 300MW Maamba coal power station owned by Zambia's largest coal mining firm Maamba Collieries, is set to double its capacity to 600MW after the construction of a second coal-fired unit was approved last year. Zambia last year also approved the construction of another 300MW coal-fired unit as part of the Mulungwa Power Generation project — a joint venture between Zambian firm Africa Power Coal and China's Jiangsu Etern. Construction of a new 600MW coal-fired power plant is also under way in Sinazongwe, according to the Zambian government, after Chinese-owned Wonderful Group's $900mn proposal was approved this year. The first 150MW of coal-fired capacity is expected to be installed by the third quarter of next year, with a further 150MW of capacity to be added in each quarter through to the second quarter of 2027. By Bryan Wu Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EU lowers CBAM benchmarks for aluminium
EU lowers CBAM benchmarks for aluminium
London, 10 December (Argus) — The European Commission has lowered the benchmark for primary aluminium imports under the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), according to a leaked draft of the approved document. The benchmark determines the free allocations of carbon emissions that will be deducted from the CBAM liability of an importer once implementation of the scheme begins in 2026. The benchmark for primary aluminium will now be set at 1.423t of CO2/t of aluminium produced, down from 1.464t in the draft document seen last month. The benchmark for secondary aluminium, which the EU defines as metal which is more than 50pc sourced from scrap metal, will now be set at 0.091t of CO2/t of aluminium produced, down from 0.139t in the draft document. For most aluminium products in the intermediate steps of the value chain, such as bars, wire, plates and sheets, an additional 0.056t will be added to the primary and secondary benchmarks, while products at the end of the value chain such as aluminium containers and aluminium foil will see an additional 0.166t added to the benchmarks. The commission has also set the default values for CBAM calculations within today's leaked documents. The CBAM default values are estimates of embedded carbon emissions that will be used to determine CBAM charges for imported material in the absence of adequate data for that specific material's origin. The risk of losing the ability to use actual emissions data is a real possibility, consultancy firm Redshaw Advisors lead CBAM advisor Dan Maleski said today. The commission has confirmed that if circumvention of CBAM is detected for a producer, all producers within that country could lose the right to use actual emissions data and would need to rely only on default values, Maleski said. The default values vary between countries and product type. Unwrought aluminium from China will have a default value of 3t of Scope 1 CO2 emissions per tonne of aluminium produced, with intermediate products at 4.88t and foil at 5.56t. Aluminium from India will have a default value of 1.87t, with intermediate products at 3.44t and foil at 4.13t. The UAE will also have a default value of 1.87t for unwrought aluminium, but lower values of 2.22t for intermediate products and 2.66t for foil. A phased-in annual mark-up to default values will be introduced over the next three years to compensate for data gaps, at an additional 10pc/yr. By Jethro Wookey Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Arab region warming at twice the global average: WMO
Arab region warming at twice the global average: WMO
London, 4 December (Argus) — The Arab region is warming at twice the global average, with temperatures increasing by 0.43°C per decade from 1991 to 2024, a report from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) found today. The world experienced the hottest year on record in 2024. The average temperature across the Arab region in 2024 was 1.08°C higher than the 1991-2020 average, the WMO said. The Arab region saw "intense heatwaves and droughts as well as extreme rainfall and storms", the WMO added. The WMO's report, the inaugural State of the Climate in the Arab Region , covers 22 countries across north and east Africa and the Middle East and was compiled with the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia and the League of Arab States. The Middle East and north Africa "are among the hottest regions in the world, and climate projections indicate a continued intensification of summer heat extremes in both subregions", the WMO said. The report also included regional climate projections from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. "If the current warming rate continues, mean temperature increase in the Arab region could reach 1.8°C with respect to the 1991-2020 average by 2050", the report found. A handful of climate plans — known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs) — submitted recently by Arab region countries underline the challenges that climate change poses for the region. NDCs submitted over the past few weeks by Bahrain, Qatar and Yemen all note the countries' vulnerability to climate change, including water scarcity. Of the 20 most water-scarce countries globally, 15 are in the Arab region, and climate change is compounding this, the WMO said. Qatar and Bahrain flagged in NDCs their water sectors as a source of emissions , including through power-intensive desalination processes. Bahrain this week noted its "water vulnerability as a challenge that is further intensified by climate change impacts", in its third NDC. By Georgia Gratton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Qatar presents 2040 climate target to UN
Qatar presents 2040 climate target to UN
Edinburgh, 4 December (Argus) — Qatar has pledged to reduce its emissions by 42mn t of CO2 equivalent (CO2e) by 2040 from a 2019 baseline, with the oil and gas sector "at the forefront of national mitigation efforts". Qatar does not provide its total greenhouse emissions for 2019, but said its climate plan encompasses CO2, methane and nitrous oxide gases. It covers the energy sector — oil and gas, power and water — construction and industry, transport, waste and agriculture, forestry and other land use. Parties to the Paris Agreement were required to submit climate plans, known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs), for 2035 to the UN climate body UNFCCC this year. Qatar had previously targeted emission reductions of 25pc, or 37mn CO2e, by 2030, compared with a business-as-usual (BAU) scenario. BAU scenarios typically assume emissions based on current policies, leaving room for potential increases. The country's emission cuts in its oil and gas sector will rely on "deploying cleaner fossil fuel technologies, developing engineered sinks to store emissions, diversifying the energy mix, and driving operational excellence across existing facilities and infrastructure", according to its climate plan. Qatar is the world's largest LNG producer, with a production capacity of 77mn t/yr, according to QatarEnergy, and its economy is heavily reliant on hydrocarbon revenues. The country's climate plan highlights the country's vulnerability to response measures to mitigate climate change, resulting from its economy's reliance on hydrocarbons. "Qatar is actively working to reduce the socio-economic effects of global climate action," the plan said, adding that it seeks to balance climate goals with national sustainable development. "Despite many efforts and considering its role as a leading producer and exporter of natural gas, Qatar remains significantly vulnerable to climate response measures," it said. Qatar is part of the Arab Group, a negotiating group in UNFCCC climate talks, which is seeking to focus on cutting emissions from fossil fuels, rather than hydrocarbon production and consumption, through increased adoption of carbon capture technologies. The country said it plays "a pivotal role" in supporting other countries' targets by "reliably supplying them with a cleaner alternative to coal and oil and providing a critical backup for intermittent renewables". Qatar's climate plan sees the secure and affordable supply of lower-carbon energy as well as the deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) and the management of emissions of energy production as the focus to pursue sustainable development and climate action. The country considers itself to be among the leaders in CCS with its Ras Laffan project, and aims to capture 11mn t/yr of CO2 by 2035. Engineering firm Samsung C&T was recently awarded a contract to build a 4.1mn t/yr CO2 facility to process and store emissions from Qatar's LNG liquefaction plants. Qatar, in its climate plan, highlighted the country's water supply vulnerability to temperature increases and heat. The power and water sector accounts for a large share of the country's emissions. Water scarcity is also responsible for increasing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in Bahrain through desalination, although its energy sector remains the main source of emissions, according to the country's new climate plan. The country is heavily reliant on fossil fuels for its energy and revenues, while "limited land availability and competing land-use demands constrain large-scale deployment" for the development of solar energy. Rising demand over the peak summer months this year meant that Bahrain had to import LNG for the first time since commissioning its 800mn ft³/d onshore LNG receiving and regasification terminal in 2020. But it is looking at renewables options and is in talks with Saudi Arabia for a link to a large-scale solar facility. Bahrain said that response measures to climate change "may lead to economic losses that, in turn, hinder Bahrain's ability to pursue effective climate action and achieve broader sustainable development objectives." By Caroline Varin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Analysis
Mexico climate pledge clashes with refinery push
Mexico climate pledge clashes with refinery push
Houston, 13 November (Argus) — Mexico's updated climate pledge sets its most ambitious emissions target, but the plan sits in sharp contrast to the government's push to increase crude processing and fuel output at state-owned Pemex's refinery system. Mexico submitted its new nationally determined contribution (NDC) ahead of this month's UN Cop 30 summit in Belem, Brazil, committing for the first time to an absolute cap on greenhouse gas emissions of 364–404mn t of CO2 equivalent (CO2e) by 2035, or 332–363mn t CO2e with international support. The target represents a cut of more than 50pc from a business-as-usual trajectory, according to the environment ministry, and aligns with Mexico's long-term commitment to reach net zero by 2050. But while Mexico promises steep emissions reductions, it is simultaneously doubling down on a fossil-heavy industrial strategy centered on reviving its aging refining system, boosting domestic output of gasoline and diesel and limiting private-sector participation across the downstream chain. Mexico's refineries — most of which regularly run at below 50–60pc of capacity — remain among Mexico's largest stationary emitters, with high rates of flaring, residual fuel oil production and energy inefficiency. The government has also poured billions of dollars into the new 340,000 b/d Olmeca refinery and continues to prioritize increasing crude throughput at the legacy system, even as maintenance shortfalls, outages and unplanned shutdowns remain common. Pemex processed about 950,000 b/d of crude across its seven domestic refineries in September, up by 8pc from a year prior and 57pc higher than the 604,300 b/d processed in September 2018, before former president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador took office. Mexico's refining-heavy strategy took shape under Lopez Obrador, who made fuel self-sufficiency the centerpiece of his administration after years of under-investment and declining output at Pemex's refining system. His government moved away from the 2014 energy reform and proposed constitutional changes that would free Pemex from its obligation to operate as a "productive state company." The shift enabled greater political influence over Pemex's operations and reinforced a nationalistic focus on refining, even as the company posted financial losses and saw its crude output fall to 40-year lows. President Claudia Sheinbaum's administration has continued that trajectory. Backed by a congressional supermajority that allows her party to advance Lopez Obrador's reforms, Sheinbaum has maintained the emphasis on fuel self-sufficiency and continued to expand Pemex's role through increased state support. Mexico's NDC frames climate policy as compatible with economic development, job creation and "just transition" principles. But the plan is still vague on specific mitigation actions for the refining sector. "Mexico's ambition is clear, but delivering on these goals will require deep structural transformation and a clear, sustained investment strategy," said Francisco Barnes Regueiro, executive director of the environmental non-governmental organization the World Resources Institute in Mexico. Meanwhile, the government maintains policies and proposed reforms that favor Pemex and state utility CFE over private-sector companies, limiting private investment in cleaner fuels and renewable electricity. The lack of incentives for low-carbon technologies, combined with an aggressive push to increase domestic production of gasoline and diesel, contradicts the technical requirements implied by the emissions cap, according to market sources. The contradiction becomes more pronounced as Mexico prepares for the Cop 30 negotiations. Mexico, which now joins more than 50 countries that have updated their NDCs, will likely face scrutiny over how its energy agenda fits within its climate ambitions. For now, the gap between Mexico's stated targets and its refining-focused policy framework remains wide. Without clear measures to reduce emissions from Pemex's refining system, expand low-carbon fuels and introduce stronger regulatory incentives, the new NDC risks becoming another aspirational document. Pemex's crude throughput '000b/d Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Can Cop summit help industry restore H2 momentum?
Can Cop summit help industry restore H2 momentum?
Brazil's renewable resources, sound economy and supportive policies could make it a powerful advocate for green H2, writes Pamela Machado Paris, 4 November (Argus) — The Cop 30 UN climate summit kicks off in a few days in Brazil against a backdrop of slowing global energy transition momentum and outright hostility from US president Donald Trump's administration to policies aimed at tackling climate change. Hydrogen has not been immune to these trends. Recent Cop summits have given the industry a platform to showcase its decarbonisation potential, but hydrogen is expected to receive a more modest hearing when delegates gather in Belem, reflecting the more downbeat global mood and the industry's slow development. This year has seen nothing like the level of final investment decisions (FIDs) for hydrogen projects that was anticipated at the start of 2025, as a combination of familiar issues — policy uncertainty, infrastructure bottlenecks and difficulties securing offtake agreements — have hindered progress for many schemes. The hydrogen sector is going through an "era of maturation and is moving from ambition to delivery — a transition similar to what solar, wind and battery industries have gone through as well", says Ivana Jemelkova, chief executive with lobby group the Hydrogen Council. This phase is "inevitably paired with attrition", Jemelkova tells Argus, with only projects demonstrating "the strongest business cases" able to line up enough financing and support to move forward. But Cop still offers an opportunity, she says — the "perfect place to advance practical solutions" to address challenges with mechanisms such as contracts-for-difference (CfD), national mandates and to set up "alliances to aggregate demand in sectors like fertilisers". Countries with renewable power potential — particularly emerging economies — have also used recent Cop summits to unveil clean hydrogen production ambitions, but momentum has slowed this year in regions such as Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa as companies have scaled back production goals and import ambitions . Emerging talent This is another area where Cop offers a chance for revival, Jemelkova argues. "As of 2025, 65 ... countries have a hydrogen strategy, of which 29 are emerging economies," she says. "This year's update of nationally determined contributions provides an opportunity to set detailed hydrogen targets." So far, there have been few signs that hydrogen will play a greater role in countries' plans, however, and the focus might lie elsewhere, given the sector's slower-than-expected progress. Brazil has used its presidency to promote hydrogen for clean industrialisation. It has announced several funding schemes, partnering with international bodies, including UN industrial development organisation Unido and the Green Climate Fund over the last year. But these initiatives have yet to yield any FIDs. International non-profit industry decarbonisation programme Industrial Transition Accelerator (ITA) chose Brazil as its first focus country because it combined government ambition, economic fundamentals and a promising project pipeline. ITA is working with 15 projects in Brazil and had hoped that some of these would reach FID ahead of the summit, but none is now expected this year. While projects reaching FID "would be a powerful symbolic accomplishment, if they cannot quite do so in time for the event, it is not a fundamental cause for concern", ITA says, as the programme's goal "is not just about individual FIDs", but also about overcoming systemic obstacles, such as high financing costs. Brazil's broader agenda as Cop president has included a pledge for nations to increase production and adoption of sustainable fuels, which seems likely to emphasise biofuels more than hydrogen-based alternatives. But planned Cop talks on increasing renewable power generation and integrating carbon markets into a global system should promote the uptake of hydrogen and derivatives, even if indirectly. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Cop 30 success hinges on GHG cuts, finance response
Cop 30 success hinges on GHG cuts, finance response
Edinburgh, 3 November (Argus) — The UN Cop 30 climate summit's success will depend on how Paris agreement parties close huge gaps between ambitions and actions for cutting emissions and bolstering finance. But the shape that this response should take is still unclear. Leaders are heading to Cop 30 on 6 November in Belem, Brazil, with the responsibility of putting the world on track to meet the goals of the Paris agreement, 10 years after it was signed. Brazil, which holds the summit presidency this year, wants to see concrete signals from parties on implementation. New nationally determined contributions (NDCs) — climate plans — due to be submitted to the UN by Cop 30 are a clear measure of progress. But only around 65 countries, out of just under 200, had submitted new plans and targets to 2035 by the end of October. More, including India, South Korea and Mexico are working on it. If implemented, plans revealed to the end of last month — which include targets from China and the EU, but not their NDCs — could contribute to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 10pc by 2035, compared with 2019 levels, according to the UN. China released its NDC on 3 November. The reductions only account for around 10pc of what is needed to put the world on track to stick to the 1.5°C temperature limit by 2035, non-profit World Resources Institute (WRI) says. "It's now for Cop 30 and for the world to respond and show how we are going to speed up," UNFCCC executive secretary Simon Stiell said. The Brazil presidency intends to help parties rise to the challenge, armed with the historic global stocktake (GST) agreement that countries agreed at Cop 28 in Dubai two years ago and its action agenda . But, unlike the two last Cops, which tackled big headline issues — the GST in Dubai, where the call to transition away from fossil fuels was made, and the new international public finance goal in Baku — Belem will have to seek progress on myriad topics, with key ones outside of its official scope. The NDCs, although central to the negotiations, do not figure on the Cop agenda, and parties continue to disagree on how they should react to the current lack of ambition. The same goes for unilateral trade measures and the much-awaited "Baku to Belem roadmap" aiming to scale up finance to developing countries to $1.3 trillion/yr by 2035 — a compromise reached after developing nations, including India, decried the Baku outcome . Fights over these topics could delay or even derail other negotiations. The presidency will have to support parties with advancing adaptation — a key Cop 30 mandate — and loss and damage talks, and by pursuing work on Cop's just transition programme and implementation of the GST, where mitigation topics, most critically transitioning from fossil fuels , are likely to prove contentious again. Paris match "We can't have one response to the implementation and ambition gap. It needs to be a series of responses because it has to work not only for different actors, different geographies, different communities, but also for different economic sectors", Cop 30 strategy chief Tulio Andrade said. The Cop presidency wants stakeholders to see the "complex response" as a "bundle of responses" coming from the negotiations, but also the action agenda and initiatives it has launched and partnerships, including with scientists. But these will have to materialise in an increasingly challenging geopolitical context, and while US president Donald Trump, who took his country out of the Paris agreement in January, is dialling up anti-climate opposition in multilateral forums . It is unclear which role the US, which did not send a delegation to the Bonn climate talks in June, will play in Brazil, but its influence will be felt. The US is the world's second largest GHG emitter after China. "Our main priority will be to have Cop 30 sending a very strong signal in support of multilateralism and the 10-year anniversary of the Paris agreement. But we know it's not the best moment [geopolitically]," Andrade says. In terms of concrete deliverables, he says, "it is an outcome that preserves and strengthens the legacy of what we have achieved so far and that accelerates implementation in response to urgency". By Caroline Varin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EU still wants to lead at UN climate talks
EU still wants to lead at UN climate talks
Brussels, 27 October (Argus) — The EU is seeking to "inject" political momentum at the upcoming UN Cop 30 climate summit. That probably means promising a CO2 emissions reduction of up to 72.5pc by 2035, against a 1990 baseline. But, just a few weeks ahead of the climate talks in Belem, Brazil, the EU has still to formally agree on anything more than a statement of intent regarding its nationally determined contribution (NDC) — climate plan. The bloc's climate credibility is "rock solid" says EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra, a former centre-right Dutch foreign and finance minister. He claims a mandate to negotiate at Cop 30. "I'm positive that we will manage to have the 2035 target also formally before we walk into Belem," Hoekstra says. He can boast latest formal figures indicating that the EU has cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 37pc since 1990, despite a 68pc rise in its GDP. The EU also only accounts for 6pc of global emissions. In the second quarter of 2025, 54pc of the EU's net power generation came from renewables. And EU environment ministers could, on 4 November, still formally give a negotiating mandate to Hoekstra for the NDC, just days ahead of talks in Brazil on 10-21 November. The ministers could even agree to a joint position on the bloc's 2040 GHG reduction target. The NDC, or 2035 target, could have been straightforward maths, with an indicative GHG reduction touted of 72.5pc — midway between a 90pc reduction by 2040 and a 55pc reduction by 2030. Slovakia, though, insisted on a lower target, eroding the target cut to 66.25pc. Another unhappy signal is the EU leaders' meeting on 23-24 October, which did not mention the commission's July proposal for a net domestic GHG cut of 90pc by 2040, compared with 1990 levels. No mention either is made of the NDC. In vague language, EU leaders merely underline the importance of contributing to the global emission reduction effort in a way that is both "ambitious and cost-efficient", also with an adequate level of "high-quality" international credits. While wavering on 2035 and 2040 climate targets, the bloc is beefing up its carbon border adjustment mechanism to prevent energy intensive industries relocating outside the bloc. That means including more sectors, supporting EU exporters and preventing resource shuffling by others selling greener products to the EU and more carbon-intensive goods domestically. "We're not asking anything from anyone [that] we're not asking from ourselves," Hoekstra tells Argus . Pointing fingers If in doubt about itself, the EU can always point at what others are not doing. It is a major blow that the US has "checked out", Hoekstra says. "Part of [climate] leadership is also to articulate what we expect of others," he adds, pointing out the lack of ambition from other major emitters, notably China. "This Cop is extremely tricky. We know what it means when a US president leaves the Paris agreement," Austrian MEP and Cop 30 delegate Lena Schilling tells Argus . "It should have been the moment the EU says: ‘we will commit to our climate ambition'." While welcoming a non-binding parliamentary resolution on 23 October that called for a 72.5pc GHG cut by 2035 and an end to fossil fuel subsidies, Schilling references a string of legal changes weakening the EU's Green Deal. That includes a recent agreement to delete obligatory climate neutrality plans for large firms under its corporate sustainability due diligence directive. The NDC, or 2035 target will be decided solely by EU states. But the 2040 target also needs to be agreed with the European parliament. The 90pc target is not acceptable right now for EU states and parliament, Bulgarian centre-right EPP member Radan Kanev tells Argus , proposing instead a target of 78pc, dependent on whether major emitters including China and India deliver on their pledges. By Dafydd ab Iago Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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