Saudi Arabia targets zero carbon emissions by 2060
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - Top crude exporter Saudi Arabia will aim to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2060, its de facto ruler said on Saturday, days before the COP26 global climate summit.
The kingdom said it would also join a global effort to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030.
The UN says more than 130 countries have set or are considering a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050, an objective it says is ‘imperative’ to safeguard a livable climate.
“I announce today Saudi Arabia’s target to reach net zero emissions by 2060,” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told the Saudi Green Initiative forum.
“I am pleased to launch initiatives in the energy sector that will reduce carbon emissions by 278mn tonnes annually by 2030, thus voluntarily more than doubling the target announced,” said Prince Mohammed.
“We also announce the kingdom’s accession to the Global Methane Pledge.”
A statement said Saudi Arabia would ‘contribute to cutting global methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030, as part of its commitment to deliver a cleaner, greener future’.
The 2060 target would ‘enable us to have a smooth and viable transition, without risking economic or social impacts’, Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said.
COP26 president Alok Sharma welcomed the news. ‘I hope this landmark announcement... will galvanise ambition from others ahead of #COP26,’ Sharma tweeted.
Saudi Arabia is estimated to emit about 600mn tonnes of CO2 per year - more than France and slightly less than Germany.
The year 2050 has become a focus for carbon neutrality, defined as achieving a balance between emitting carbon and absorbing carbon from the atmosphere.
Held between October 31 and November 12, the COP26 gathering is seen as a crucial step in setting worldwide emission targets to slow global warming.
In March, Saudi Arabia unveiled a campaign to tackle climate change and reduce carbon emissions, including a plan to plant billions of trees in the coming decades.
The OPEC kingpin aims to reduce emissions by generating half of its energy from renewables by 2030, Prince Mohammed said at the time.
The Crown Prince on Saturday announced the first phase would include planting more than 450mn trees and the rehabilitation of 8mn hectares of degraded land.
Saudi Arabia also declared it would designate new ‘protected areas’. The move brings ‘the total protected areas in the kingdom to more than 30 per cent of its total area’, Prince Mohammed said.