Brazil dismisses calls to relocate COP30 amid Amazon city price surge

BRASILIA – Brazil is resisting calls to move the global COP30 climate summit, scheduled for November, out of Belem even as it faces mounting pressure over soaring accommodation prices in the Amazonian city.

“The COP will be in Belem, the leaders’ summit will be in Belem,” COP30 president Andre Correa do Lago told reporters on Aug 1. “There is no plan B.”

Nearly every government in the world will gather at the annual UN summit to negotiate their joint efforts to curb climate change. But concerns about logistics, rather than global climate policy, have dominated pre-summit chatter.

Developing countries have warned that they cannot afford Belem’s accommodation prices, which have soared amid a shortage of rooms.

Last week, representatives of several countries pressured Brazil to move the conference away from Belem during an emergency meeting at the UN climate bureau, Mr Correa do Lago said.

That brought to the head a steady stream of concerns raised by members of the UN climate secretariat, known as UNFCCC, with Brazil over the price and lack of accommodation in Belem for months.

At the same meeting of the COP bureau in July, the UNFCCC told participants that it had provided advice to Brazil on potentially moving parts of COP30 – such as the section where world leaders speak – out of Belem to ease pressure on accommodation, according to a summary of the COP bureau meeting seen by Reuters. Brazil rejected the idea, the summary said. 

The UNFCCC declined to comment.

In a statement, the Brazilian presidency said “there is no discussion regarding a change in the host city for COP30” and the Brazilian government “reiterates its commitment to holding a comprehensive, inclusive and accessible climate conference”.

The government of Para state – where Belem is the capital – told Reuters that it is in constant contact with hotels, landlords and real estate agencies to “reinforce the need for responsibility and good practices”, but stated that Brazilian law does not allow government interference in a process that is governed by free negotiation.

Hotels in Belem are few, and despite requests from the government, they are charging 10 or even 15 times what they charge regularly, Mr Correa do Lago said. “Maybe the hotels aren’t aware of the crisis they are creating,” he said.

Countries are not just concerned about accommodation. They are also worried about whether rooms being offered to delegations will be close enough together, so negotiations can run smoothly, whether there will be enough food options and if local airports will be able to handle the influx of visitors.

But Brazil has maintained that preparations for the conference are on track, with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva showing no willingness to backtrack on his promise to present the Amazon rainforest to the world at COP30.

His administration has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into improving infrastructure in Belem to host the conference, helping Para Governor Helder Barbalho draw public and foreign investment. 

An old political ally, Mr Barbalho helped Mr Lula win the election in Para in 2022 and will be a key element for the President’s campaign in 2026.

Mr Lula and Mr Barbalho did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Brazil has offered 10 to 15 rooms at prices of up to US$220 (S$280) a night to delegations of countries considered to be among the least developed in the world.

But that amount exceeds the US$146 the UN offers to diplomats of such countries to pay for accommodation, meals and transport.

Mr Correa do Lago told reporters on Aug 1 that infrastructure issues “are interfering at a time, deep down, we should be using to discuss substantive issues”.

On Aug 1, Brazil opened a booking platform to the public.

On the morning of Aug 4, the website showed a wait list of almost 2,000 people, but Reuters was able to access it after waiting an hour. It showed rates from US$360 to US$4,400 a night. REUTERS