Nations meet to discuss fossil fuel exit as Iran war drives up prices

BRUSSELS - Around 60 governments, including Brazil, Germany, Canada and Nigeria, will hold the first international meeting this week to discuss phasing out fossil fuels, as the Iran war upends global oil and gas markets and sends prices soaring.

The gathering of ministers and officials in Santa Marta, Colombia, which starts on Tuesday, will focus on practical steps to shift economies away from fossil fuels, rather than setting new global targets of the kind agreed at U.N. climate summits.

"We're not negotiating ambitions, we're not negotiating commitments. This really is about sharing how you do this," said Stientje van Veldhoven, climate minister for the Netherlands, which is co-organizing the meeting with Colombia.

Governments will discuss "what kind of financial instruments, what kind of regulatory incentives, what kind of planning instruments" are needed to kickstart a phase-out, she said.

Talks will also address how to create investment conditions for industries to switch from gas to electricity, and how to reform fossil fuel subsidies.

The meeting brings together a coalition of willing nations, with the world's top two polluters - China and the U.S. - notably absent. Saudi Arabia and other major Middle Eastern oil and gas producers are also not attending.

The Iran war has exposed many countries' heavy dependency on oil and gas imports, with Asian economies hit by fuel shortages, and European countries facing surging energy costs.

Van Veldhoven said the energy crisis had reinforced the case for phasing out oil and gas to bolster economic and energy security, not just to tackle climate change.

"This war in the Middle East has ramifications all around the world because of our dependency on fossil fuels," she said. "The less you are dependent on it, the less vulnerable you are."

The meeting also reflects frustration among some governments at slow progress in annual U.N. climate talks, where nearly 200 countries must agree decisions by consensus.

Countries agreed to transition away from fossil fuels at the COP28 climate summit in 2023. But subsequent COP meetings have done little to advance that pledge, with countries including Saudi Arabia blocking recent proposals targeting fossil fuels.

Carbon dioxide emissions from burning coal, oil and gas are the main driver of climate change.