COP30 “Vibe Shift” Wrecking Climate Progress – Watts Up With That?

Essay by Eric Worrall

“… Countries prioritising cheaper, dirtier energy production and showing less enthusiasm for the hard, costly work of cutting emissions have led to a global vibe shift …”

This year’s global climate summit is different – but not in a good way

The vibe shift on global climate action has hit the buzz around Brazil’s COP, but the true believers are still there doing work they say is as urgent as ever.

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But the persistence of the climate policy crowd in trekking to Belém, where temporary rooms on cruise ships moored at the mouth of the Guamá River are reportedly going for more than $4000 a night, does not mean all is well with the global climate action movement. Far from it.

Countries prioritising cheaper, dirtier energy production and showing less enthusiasm for the hard, costly work of cutting emissions have led to a global vibe shift, as illustrated by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s pre-summit leaders meeting over the weekend.

Heads of state from almost all the world’s biggest emitters, including the United States, China, India and Russia, did not attend. Australia, which says it wants to host the event next year, sent its assistant energy minister, Josh Wilson.

As far as global diplomatic priorities go, it amounted to little more than a collective shrug. And that’s a problem – because this is not any old climate summit.

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Read more (paywalled): https://www.afr.com/policy/energy-and-climate/this-year-s-global-climate-summit-is-different-but-not-in-a-good-way-20251107-p5n8m4

It is hilarious that the Trump agenda is dominating the COP30 climate conference, even though Trump is a no show.

Australian Financial Review contributors almost always take a pro-renewables position, so it is quite an admission that “dirtier” energy production methods are cheaper.

Renewables being more expensive shouldn’t be a surprise, certainly not to WUWT readers. The intermittency of renewables is a show stopper in terms of cost competitiveness. Obtaining reliable power from a supply system which includes renewables either requires insanely expensive battery backup and massive overcapacity, or an entire duplicate fossil fuel system, which has to be paid for and kept on hot standby for when the renewables let you down.

I wouldn’t read too much into the drop in attendance, though sending junior doesn’t exactly scream “top priority”. The host city Belém is an easy day trip from the equator, and its proximity to water keeps the weather dripping wet and steamy, pretty much all the time. Think Singapore with more biting insects and less chance of a sea breeze. That alone could have deterred senior politicians from temperate nations from visiting – especially if the conference hall aircon is struggling to keep up.