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Australian Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen on Wednesday said that India and Australia could deepen their energy partnership by building on their complementary strengths, while stressing the role of renewable energy amid the global energy crisis.
Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the Chintan Research Foundation (CRF) Pre-COP Dialogue in New Delhi, Bowen said he held consultations with Union Ministers Yadav and Joshi on COP31, fuel security for Australia and the two countries' partnership on liquid fuels. He also said he would visit Mumbai and Reliance in Jamnagar during his India visit. In relation to COP31, obviously, as I said, Minister Yadav is one of the world's most senior and respected climate ministers, Bowen said, adding that the two ministers had co-chaired negotiations on three occasions and that Yadav would play an important role at COP31. Bowen said his negotiating priorities included electrification, access to finance for Small Island Developing States and the importance of oceans, adding that he would hold further consultations with India and other parties in the coming weeks. We are in the middle of an energy crisis around the world, he said, while linking the crisis to the need for reliable renewable energy. As I'm talking to Reliance and other players about fuel security, it's a reminder that renewable energy is reliable energy, Bowen said. No war can interrupt the flow of sun to the Earth. No blockade can stop the wind blowing. He said countries working together to build new and reliable supply chains would be relevant both during the current energy crisis and in the longer term as renewable energy increasingly replaces fossil fuels. On India-Australia energy cooperation, Bowen said the partnership was based on the countries' respective strengths, citing cooperation on solar energy and green hydrogen. Well, the energy partnership is based on complementary strengths--what we can help each other on, Bowen said. He highlighted the Solar Academy in Gujarat, which he said would train 2,000 solar technicians. And the work we're doing on green hydrogen, for example, where Australia has good research and good capacity, and India is working on complementary things, Bowen said. So it's very much a relationship built on complementary strengths. On the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR) and the debate around a fossil fuel roadmap, Bowen said he did not see the two as conflicting. Common but Differentiated Responsibilities means what it says. We all have responsibilities; they're different for different countries, but the pathway and the destination is agreed, he said. On adaptation and loss and damage, Bowen referred to the devastating floods in Nepal and said adaptation and resilience would remain part of the COP31 discussions. Loss and damage is part of that conversation, but as you said, parameters of loss and damage have been set at previous COPs.It's not front and centre of this COP agenda, but adaptation is, and resilience is, and it's part of the same conversation. And the devastating floods in Nepal, which I'm sure captured the world's attention--I know captured Australia's--are perhaps the clearest and starkest reminders of what's at stake, Bowen said. On adaptation finance, Bowen said Australia's focus would be on ensuring vulnerable countries could access existing climate finance. Our main focus is on making sure that those most vulnerable countries have access to the finance which already exists, he said. We've done the NCQG [New Collective Quantified Goal], and we have established the parameters of climate finance, Bowen said, adding that countries with limited capacity to participate in mechanisms run by institutions such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and Green Climate Fund should be able to access the available finance. Asked about Australia's position as a major coal exporter while pursuing electrification, Bowen said the country recognised both the role fossil fuels continue to play and the need for transition. We know coal has a role to play in the system. And yes, we know you can't get rid of it or transition immediately. But we do need to transition. And Australia, as a fossil fuel exporter, recognises that and recognises that we, as a fossil fuel exporter, can play a role in that transition, Bowen added. On his approach to engaging countries with which Australia may not traditionally agree, Bowen said the COP31 process would be based on consultation. We are running a consultative process. I'm here with my friend Minister Yadav today. We always agree, Minister Yadav and I, but we still have to consult with each other. I'm off to Saudi Arabia after this for consultations. And you know, we will run a predictable, inclusive COP, an ambitious COP, but one which has been based on consultation, Bowen said. (ANI)
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