Opec pursues charm offensive at COP28, for the youth

DUBAI - The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) held an event on the sidelines of the COP28 negotiations in Dubai on Dec 10 aimed at convincing young people to support fossil fuels, whose future has caused deep splits among delegates at the climate summit.

Dubbed “Special Day – Opec and the youth”, the event included a presentation at its pavilion on the summit grounds, followed by what it called a campfire chat.

Roughly a dozen young people attended, some of them anti-fossil fuel activists.

Opec officials working the event had a simple message: Rapid population growth means oil demand will continue to grow, and renewable energy is expensive and limited.

Opec’s secretary-general Haitham Al Ghais asked the audience to visualise a population boom the size of “50 Londons” by 2030. London’s population is about nine million. “This is to make a point of how much additional energy we are talking about,” he said.

One Opec representative pointed out the importance of fossil fuels in the medical sector, and asked the group whether someone who needed to be rushed away in an ambulance would care if the fuel used was sustainable.

A monitor behind him displayed the message: “Opec recognises the critical role of the youth in shaping the energy industry and shaping an energy future for all.”

Around a dozen activists from the organisation 350.org briefly entered the pavilion between sessions and chanted: “What do we want? Phase out. When do we want it? Now.”

That was a reference to proposed language in the COP28 final agreement that would, for the first time, call for a phase out of the use of fossil fuels, the main source of greenhouse gas emissions that scientists blame for global warming.

Opec opposes the proposal, and earlier last week made a rare intervention in climate talks by urging its members and allies to reject a targeting of fossil fuels in the final summit deal.

Another Opec representative spoke with some of the young activists outside the pavilion, debating with them on the future of oil.

Also on display in the Opec pavilion were everyday items made with, or run on, petroleum products, like a soccer ball and a miniature school bus. A small chalkboard easel handwritten with different colours said: “Special day-Opec and the Youth”.

Mr Michael Matchell, who attended the event on behalf of a group called Young Evangelicals for Climate Action, said Opec had a chance to listen to their concerns about climate change, but repeated its own arguments instead.

“I believe they missed a crucial opportunity to engage with young people,” he said.  REUTERS