Guterres criticises oil company profits at COP31
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on TimesLIVE
Gary Bembridge from London, UK · CC BY 2.0 · António Guterres: Daina Le Lardic / European Union · European ParliamentUN Secretary-General António Guterres accuses oil companies of making billions in profits while families and states suffer. At COP31 in Antalya, Turkey, he links dependence on fossil fuels to the economic and security crises in the Middle East, according to remarks reported by the press.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres criticised the profits of oil companies on Tuesday at COP31 in Antalya, Turkey. According to Guterres, nine oil companies are on track to earn more than $95 billion in three months, or over $1 billion a day, while families, businesses and governments pay the price of dependence on fossil fuels, he said, as cited by TimesLIVE.
Guterres did not name the companies. ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP and Shell have, however, posted exceptional profits since the start of the war in Iran at the end of February. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, meanwhile, welcomed an oil discovery in Turkey’s mountains.
Turkey, the host country, is pushing governments to sign a commitment to raise electricity’s share of global energy consumption to 35% by 2035, from around a fifth today. According to climate advocates, the commitment does not require that the additional electricity be low-carbon. COP31 President Murat Kurum says the target would cut emissions and strengthen long-term energy security. These debates are part of the discussions on electrification under way in Antalya.
