COP31 climate talks open in Antalya with electrification target in focus
The UN COP31 climate summit opened in Antalya, Türkiye, on 9 November and runs to 20 November. Negotiators remain divided over finance for developing countries and the move away from fossil fuels.
- COP31 runs from 9 to 20 November in Antalya; Türkiye holds the presidency and Australia leads negotiations.
- Türkiye proposes raising electricity's share of global energy demand to 35 per cent by 2035.
- Moving away from fossil fuels is not on the formal negotiated agenda.
- UN chief António Guterres warned of an 'age of climate extremes', Arab News reported.
The UN COP31 climate summit opened on Monday 9 November in Antalya, Türkiye. The conference runs until 20 November and brings together leaders, ministers, negotiators, scientists and civil society representatives, according to Anadolu Agency.
Türkiye holds the presidency and hosts the summit. Under an arrangement reached after both countries bid to host, Australia will steer the negotiations, with Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen leading them. A World Leaders' Summit is planned for 11 and 12 November, and the theme is "COP of the Future – COP of Implementation".
The talks are meant to end with a consensus-based package of decisions on climate action, alongside a parallel agenda of voluntary actions by companies, cities, banks, investors, civil society and universities. Euronews reported that the presidency sets the action agenda, while the UNFCCC oversees the negotiating agenda.
Türkiye is asking countries to commit to a 35-by-35 target: raising electricity's share of global energy demand from around 20 per cent to 35 per cent by 2035. Climate Action Tracker found governments would need to electrify four times faster to meet it, and says current policies deliver only 28 per cent by 2035. Proposed 2035 targets also include cutting energy use intensity in buildings by at least 25 per cent and raising the global circular material use rate to at least 15 per cent.
Samuel Guéret, an analyst at a Climate Analytics partner organisation, said: "Electrification only limits overshoot if the electricity is cleanly generated, which is why this target should be seen as part of a package with the renewables and efficiency targets agreed at COP28."
Transition away from fossil fuels will not feature on the formal negotiated agenda. Countries pledged it for the first time at COP28 in Dubai, but fossil fuels were not mentioned in the final text of COP30. Brazil published a voluntary global roadmap before handing leadership to Türkiye. Türkiye says fossil fuels are needed for energy security, and its coal was the largest source of power last year. Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar used the phrase "just transition period".
Negotiators remain divided over financing for developing countries. The UNEP 2026 Emissions Gap Report projects warming of around 2.6C this century even if pledges are fully implemented, and estimates developing countries will need around $305 billion a year for adaptation by 2035. International public adaptation finance was $28.2 billion to $31.7 billion in 2024.
Arab News reported that UN Secretary-General António Guterres told the conference the world is entering an era of climate extremes, worsened by a strong El Niño and climate change.
Background
khabr.pk reported on 8 November that the 31st UN climate talks would be held in Antalya from 9 to 20 November, and that Guterres had called the moment critical for action on global warming.
Why it matters
Pakistan is among the countries most exposed to climate disasters, so the talks shape future funding and flood risk. The reported gap between the roughly $305 billion a year developing countries need for adaptation and the $28.2 billion to $31.7 billion of public adaptation finance in 2024 bears on how much support such countries can expect. The summit follows a year of floods, heat waves and droughts, according to Anadolu.
