By Virginia Furness and Karin Strohecker
LONDON (Reuters) -Azerbaijan, host of last year’s United Nations climate summit, will deliver its overdue climate action plan by September, COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev told Reuters on Thursday, adding the oil-producing country was advancing its green energy transition,
Azerbaijan had said it would use its presidency of the annual U.N. talks to lead by example and persuade countries to submit national climate plans aligned with the U.N. goal to try to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit)above pre-industrial levels.
The Paris Agreement requires all countries to submit Nationally Determined Contributions, or climate action plans, that describe policies or decisions to cut emissions, and update them every few years.
But only a handful of countries submitted plans by the original February deadline and Azerbaijan was among those who failed to do so, prompting the U.N. to extend the deadline to September.
“It is very easy to declare something,” Babayev said, noting that countries may have delayed submission of their NDCs due to the need for more preparation into developing their programmes.
He said Azerbaijan was developing a comprehensive programme on a transition to a lower carbon economy and would submit its plan by September.
Campaigners are concerned global efforts to tackle climate change are losing momentum after the United States, historically the biggest producer of greenhouse gases, under President Donald Trump has withdrawn from the United Nations’ efforts and big business has abandoned sustainability goals.
Babayev said Azerbaijan was working towards a goal to generate 30% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and planned to increase its solar capacity, as well as seeking to export offshore wind from the Caspian Sea to EU customers.
“For us, it’s so important to demonstrate how the country with a big oil and gas history (has) now turned the economy to the green energy direction,” he said.
Only 19 countries have submitted new Nationally Determined Contributions, according to tracker Climate Watch.
Azerbaijan this year hands the presidency of the U.N. talks to Brazil, which will host COP30 in November.
(Reporting by Virginia Furness; Editing by Rachna Uppal and Barbara Lewis)
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