As part of the 50th anniversary of the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Agency’s ministerial meeting in Paris on 13 and 14 February, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, encouraged international cooperation in the energy transition at the opening plenary session on Tuesday 13 February, and praised the Agency’s work, particularly during the energy crisis in 2022.
“From the very beginning, you have made it clear that the only sustainable solution is a global transition to clean energy. The issue now goes far beyond climate change. It has become a fundamental pillar of global energy security and sustainable growth”, she said to IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.
Energy cooperation. The President of the Commission also drew parallels between the crisis triggered by Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine and the first oil crisis, which led to the creation of the IEA in 1974 to promote global cooperation on energy security.
“Fifty years ago, the International Energy Agency was created in response to an oil crisis. Today, you are drawing on 50 years of experience to lead the transition to a global clean energy system”, she declared.
For Fatih Birol, the IEA is indeed “the benchmark” for cooperation in the energy field, crisis response and progress towards carbon neutrality in 2050. At the opening plenary session, he particularly welcomed India’s notification of its intention to become a full member of the Agency, further strengthening cooperation on a global scale.
The French President, Emmanuel Macron, joined in the congratulations by video conference, thanking Mr Birol for his personal work at the head of the Agency over the past eight years, and saying that the Agency had become “the driving force behind the Paris Agreement” aimed at limiting the rise in temperatures to 1.5°C.
Innovation. Some thirty ministers, together with business leaders and civil society, met earlier on 13 February to take stock of the latest developments in energy markets, policies and transitions, at a series of high-level dialogues and a forum devoted to innovation (see other news).
The French Minister for the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, who co-chaired the ministerial meeting with the Irish Minister for Climate and the Environment, Eamon Ryan, said that the Agency’s expertise was essential for gathering valuable data on the transition and encouraging innovation.
“If we want to succeed in economic growth and climate change, we must have the same access to different knowledge and innovation (...), in order to make the climate transition a success”, he said.
A just transition. Mr Le Maire also pointed out that this transition had to be just for everyone: “There is a major social risk if we do not support our citizens, specific industrial sectors (...) and the agricultural sector. The transition should not be a source of pain or anxiety. It should be a solution, not a problem”.
On this subject, the United States’ special envoy for the climate, John Kerry, recalled and welcomed the conclusions of COP28 in Dubai last December (see EUROPE 13313/16), adopted by 195 countries which “not only signed up to an exit from fossil fuels”, but an exit that is intended to be “just, equitable and accelerated over the course of this decade in order to achieve the goal of zero emissions by 2050”, according to science.
“This is the very embodiment of a powerful standard”, he said. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)