Category: Energy and Power

The government of Bangladesh, in partnership with the United Nations Development Program, launched a new project recently to promote lowcarbon urban development in Dhaka, Chattogram, and other major cities. Funded by the Global Environment Facility, the initiative aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and foster sustainable urban growth through greater investment in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and waste-toenergy solutions.

the five-year initiative titled ‘Promoting EnergyRelated Low Carbon Urban Development in Bangladesh’ will be executed by the Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority under the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, said a press release. Launched ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference, the signing ceremony took place at the Economic Relations Division conference room in Dhaka

United States Energy Association President and CEO Mark Menezes recently issued the following statement commending the U.S. natural gas industry for becoming the first nation to export 10.1 million metric tonnes of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in a single month. ‘This achievement firmly establishes the United States as the world’s leading LNG exporter and is a direct and decisive win for the Trump Administration’s energy dominance policies,’ Menezes stated, noting his past support of the establishment of the National Energy Dominance Council. ‘By prioritizing maximum production and cutting bureaucratic red tape, we are unlocking America’s full energy potential.

our ability to rapidly scale up production showcases the strength and reliability of our energy infrastructure, which is crucial for U.S.

economic stability and our influence on the global stage.

Russian oil giant Lukoil announced recently that it will sell its international assets after US President Donald Trump imposed new sanctions aimed at pressuring Moscow to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine.

in a statement, the company said it has begun talks with potential buyers and will complete the sales under a grace period allowing transactions until 21 November. Lukoil added that it may seek an extension if more time is needed to finalize the deals.

the company holds oil and gas interests in 11 countries, including refineries in Bulgaria and Romania, and a 45% stake in a Dutch refinery. The sanctions, announced on 22 October, target Lukoil and Rosneft, Russia’s two largest oil producers, which account for about half of the nation’s oil exports. Chevron, Petronas Appoint Operators of Two ShallowWater Blocks Offshore Suriname Suriname’s state oil and gas company Staatsolie has signed Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) for two shallow-water blocks around 50 km offshore Saramacca. Petronas Suriname EandP will operate Block 9, in partnership with Chevron Suriname Exploration, QatarEnergy International and Paradise Oil (POC). Chevron will operate Block 10, in partnership with the same three companies.

the two blocks span a total area of around 5,456 sq km in the Suriname-Guyana basin.

The world may once again express political support in Belém for keeping the 1.5°C goal alive. Still, it would be unrealistic to expect any global consensus on the actions and financing required to achieve it.

at the same time, major developed and emerging economies continue to rely on fossil fuels while increasing investments in technologies to reduce emissions, delaying the energy transition.

advocate Hafij Khan made these remarks during a conversation with Mollah Amzad Hossain, Editor of Energy and Power.

advocate Khan is a climate finance expert and Founder and Director Centre for Climate Justice-Bangladesh (CCJ-B), member of multiple global working groups, including the SCF-SDF, GCF-CE, and the Advisory Group to the Executive Director of the Loss and Damage Fund under the World Bank. COP30 negotiations on various climate agenda items are ongoing.

the first week of technical-level discussions is coming to an end. How much progress has been made? Look, COP negotiations follow a continuous process.

in that sequence, during the first week in Belém, deliberations moved forward on climate finance, the mitigation work program, the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), transparency frameworks, and more.

the number of indicators for the adaptation framework has been brought down below 100, which is positive. But it would be wrong to say that there has been any breakthrough.

there remains a considerable gap between the expectations of developing-country negotiators and the positions of developed countries. Now the unresolved issues are moving to ministerial-level negotiations.

i don’t want to be pessimistic; certainly, we may see progress in some areas.

usually, negotiators receive political direction from the Leaders’ Summit at the beginning of a COP. What was achieved this time? Normally, the Leaders’ Summit takes place in the first few days of the COP, but this year it was scheduled at the last moment for 6-7 November.

the Summit produced a declaration emphasizing the protection of multilateralism in climate action. Leaders from both the Global South and North reaffirmed their commitment to keeping the 1.5°C goal within reach. However, they offered no commitments on the financing needed, whether for the climate funds or for adopting ambitious NDCs.

one pledge came for USD 5.6 billion for Brazil’s proposed Tropical Forests Forever Fund. But no country offered new commitments to the Loss and Damage Fund, which is disappointing. Leaders from the US, Russia, China, and India-countries responsible for around 50% of global emissions-were absent. How is this affecting negotiations? You are absolutely right.

the absence of heads of state or government from these major emitters created frustration at the Summit.

this frustration is reflected in the declaration as well. We know that political signals from leaders help negotiators move forward. This year, such direction was missing, resulting in a somewhat disoriented first week of negotiations. Leaders from 134 Global South countries demanded a tripling of grant-based adaptation finance and increasing public-sector contributions to climate funds. However, the Global North offered no meaningful response. Brazil invested heavily in climate diplomacy this year. How effectively is the COP Presidency steering negotiations on issues like finance and the 1.5°C goal? Yes, Brazil has engaged extensively in climate diplomacy. But it would be an exaggeration to say the Presidency is strongly driving COP30 towards turning commitments into action.

they are more active than Azerbaijan but weaker than the UAE’s presidency last year. However, it appears the Troika may try to deliver two roadmaps in the final week: The Baku-Belém Roadmap for USD 1.3 trillion, and a political declaration to keep 1.5°C alive.

the Loss and Damage Fund has so far received no new commitments at COP30. Yet the Fund has called for proposals for disbursing USD 250 million. How prepared is the LandD Board to deliver finance quickly? Under the Barbados Implementation Modalities (BIM), the LandD Fund has issued a call for proposals to affected countries. Each country now has up to six months to submit its project proposals based on its specific loss and damage contexts. Funding decisions will be made quickly once proposals are reviewed under BIM.

as far as I know, Bangladesh has already begun preparing its proposal and is expected to submit within the deadline.

one of the biggest items is the Baku-toBelém Roadmap for USD 1.3 trillion. Negotiations aim to determine how, and from which sources, this annual finance can be mobilized by 2035. How is this progressing? Look, despite good progress in the negotiation text, many issues still remain unresolved – meaning they are placed within brackets.

in Baku, countries agreed that from 2026, the global community would provide $300 billion annually to the climate fund.

the LDC Group is strongly pushing for a strategy to ensure this commitment is delivered.

at the same time, they have demanded the unpaid portion of the previously committed $100 billion per year. But on this issue, the gap between negotiators from developed countries and developing countries remains very wide. However, negotiations are progressing positively on the roadmap for mobilizing $1.3 trillion per year by 2035 from public, private, and innovative sources.

the COP Presidency is also trying to move this agenda forward. Civil society organizations around the world are pressuring COP30 to finalize the Belém Mechanism for Just Transition. They are demanding that a Just Transition roadmap be finalized within the next three years, starting from here.

is this issue on the negotiation table? Look, all climate impact-related work is linked to Just Transition.

although there are differing views, discussions are progressing positively. However, there is no sign that the civil society demand for a Belém Just Transition Roadmap will see any meaningful advancement in the negotiations. COP Belém is expected to adopt the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA). How far have negotiations progressed on finalizing the indicators-whether keeping them at 100 or reducing them? And what direction is the discussion taking regarding increasing adaptation finance, especially the demand that 50% of climate finance be allocated to adaptation? You are right. Work on this has been ongoing for a long time.

the indicators for adopting the GGA are now close to finalization. Based on these, national adaptation plans will need to be revised. This means that institutional and human capacity, as well as technological support, must be strengthened as part of the means of implementation.

this will require substantial financing. Beyond the long-standing demand for allocating 50% of climate finance to adaptation, the LDC Group is now demanding that adaptation finance be tripled and made grant-based.

even if COP30 adopts the GGA, it is unrealistic to expect significant progress on securing the required financing for its implementation. World leaders believe there is no alternative to keeping the 1.5°C goal alive to avoid a climate catastrophe. This is tied to emission reduction plans or NDCs, which require massive investment. How successful do you think COP30 will be in keeping the goal alive? The Troika’s core message is a very short sentence: ‘Keep 1.5°C alive.’ But achieving it is monumental.

the IPCC has already warned that global temperature is on track to reach 2.7°C in the early part of this century.

at Glasgow, the world agreed to keep 1.5°C alive and adopted the phase-down of coal decision. But momentum faded at Sharm El-Sheikh.

in Dubai, the decision to transition away from fossil fuels revived hope. However, now several major polluting countries are arguing not for reducing fossil fuel use, but for using technologies to reduce emissions. Meanwhile, the world has fallen behind the Dubai goals of tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030.

to achieve net zero, greenhouse gas emissions must fall by 60% by 2035 – but the world is far off track.

the NDC Synthesis Report shows that even if all 64 updated NDCs are fully implemented, emissions would fall by only 17% by 2035 compared to 2019 – far below what is needed.

therefore, the world must adopt much more ambitious NDCs. But the countries responsible for 50% of global emissions are not showing a strong willingness.

the Mitigation Work Program must also be significantly strengthened.

and all this requires huge investments, which must come from developed countries. But there is no assurance of that.

it seems likely that the Belém Declaration will once again reaffirm the commitment to keep 1.5°C alive. But how it will be achieved – that remains a big unanswered question.

Another Conference of the Parties (COP) is underway-this time in Belém, Brazil. For two weeks, policymakers from around the world will negotiate greenhouse gas mitigation measures to keep the 1.5°C temperature goal within reach. Developing countries are expected to press for the finance they urgently need for both adaptation and mitigation.

expectations are high that developed nations will announce expanded climate-finance commitments, raising the current USD 300 billion pledge agreed at the last COP.

there is also hope that a larger share of this finance will come in the form of grants and low-cost loans.

the scale of financing required is immense: an estimated USD 1.3 trillion per year. Yet developed countries have committed to only USD 300 billion annually beginning in 2035 – a promise that falls far short of the immediate needs.

the gap between what developing countries expect and what has been promised is wide, and these countries need support now, not years down the line.

their demands are grounded in reality. Developing nations are already experiencing the harshest climate impacts, with rising temperatures, extreme weather, and economic disruptions accelerating far faster than expected. Globally, time is running out.

uN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that the world is on track to *temporarily breach* the 1.5°C limit, meaning even greater efforts will be required to realign with the Paris Agreement. Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the backbone of the Paris Agreement, continue to fall short. According to the latest UNFCCC analysis, the updated NDCs (NDC 3.0) submitted by 64 countries remain far off the trajectory needed to achieve the 1.5°C goal.

as climate impacts worsen, COP30 must deliver results rather than another round of lofty promises. Since the Paris Agreement was signed, nearly every COP has ended with pledges to enhance ambition on mitigation, adaptation, and finance. COP30, widely considered the ‘implementation COP,’ must now translate those commitments into concrete action, particularly from developed countries whose support is essential for developing nations. Unfortunately, recent COPs have repeatedly disappointed. Some delegates from developing countries warn that public confidence in the COP process may erode unless tangible progress becomes visible. While renewable energy deployment is accelerating and energyefficiency improvements offer hope, the scale of action remains far below what is required.

the COP30 Presidency has outlined a six-point action agenda covering adaptation, mitigation, forest protection, and finance, offering a clear roadmap. Despite pushback from some countries, the debate over transitioning away from fossil fuels continues, first introduced at COP28 in Dubai. Whether it involves ‘phaseout’ or ‘phasedown,’ a concrete pathway is essential, and COP30 could be the moment to secure one. Yet history offers reason for cautious optimism.

the 1992 Earth Summit in Brazil, often seen as a landmark moment in global environmental governance, established the UNFCCC and paved the way for today’s climate negotiations. More than 30 years later, COP30 in the Amazon may once again become a turning point, helping the world confront climate reality and agree on actionable, Paris-aligned measures.

there is also hope in the Paris Agreement itself. Without it, discussions about breaching 1.5°C or the magnitude of necessary finance would not even be possible.

the Agreement lays out the global path forward and has guided analyses showing both the scale of investment required and the critical need for support to developing countries. Whether COP30 can mobilize that support and transform commitments into action will determine whether the world can still meet its climate goals

Denmark inaugurated one of Europe’s few low-carbon hydrogen plants recently, a sector touted as a key to cleaner energy but plagued with challenges.

using eight electrolysers powered by solar and wind energy, the HySynergy project will produce around eight tonnes of hydrogen a day in its first phase, to be transported to a nearby refinery and to Germany. Hydrogen has been touted as a potential energy game-changer that could decarbonize industry and heavy transport.

unlike fossil fuels, which emit planet-warming carbon, hydrogen simply produces water vapor when burned. But producing so-called ‘green hydrogen’ remains a challenge, and the sector is still struggling to take off in Europe, with a multitude of projects abandoned or delayed.

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan has called upon South Asian nations to rebuild trust, strengthen regional connectivity and pursue joint action as global disorder becomes the new reality. She stressed that the region must act collectively to confront shared crises such as air and plastic pollution, water insecurity and escalating climate disasters.

the Environment Adviser made the call while addressing the opening plenary titled ‘Sustainable Development in the Emerging World Disorder’ as guest of honor at the SDPI Annual Conference in Islamabad, Pakistan recently, said a release. ‘Environmental protection and development are not alternatives. Sustainability must be at the heart of our future,’ she said, urging regional cooperation on river governance, equitable watersharing, and plastic waste management.

W o r k o v e r Year – Energy’ Award operations have started at Well-5 of the Habiganj gas field, with the Bangladesh Gas Field Company Limited (BGFCL) aiming to boost the national gas supply by 10-15 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) once completed.

the BGFCL said the workover is expected to be completed by December 2025, helping to ease the country’s ongoing energy shortage. Petrobangla Director (Administration) SM Mahbub Alam inaugurated the workover operations on 24 October.

the inauguration was attended by BGFCL Managing Director Engr Md Faruque Hossain, Petrobangla officials, and senior executives from BGFCL and BAPEX.

an average of 105 million cubic feet of gas is currently supplied daily to the national grid from the seven operational wells at the Habiganj gas field. Well-5, drilled in 1988 to a depth of 3,521 metres, began feeding gas to the national grid in February 1992.

A the climate summit (COP30) at Belem, Brazil entered a crucial second week of negotiations the rich nations must fulfill their responsibilities to the poor nations which are most vulnerable to climate change. Bangladesh is one of them. With a history of cyclones, floods, drought, climateinduced losses, debt pressures and frequent disasters Bangladesh has urged the rich nations to come forward with the promised financing for adaptation. Bangladesh delegates at the summit have warned against any delay in arriving at an agreement on climate finance, particularly on whether Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement should be taken up as a dedicated agenda item.

according to report published in The Business Standard Article 9.1 obligates developed countries to provide financial resources to developing nations for both mitigation and adaptation efforts.

the report quoted Navid Shafiullah, additional secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Deputy Head of Bangladesh’s delegation, as telling a media briefing in Belem that the lack of progress is causing growing frustration among developing countries. ‘Parties have not reached consensus on even placing Article 9.1 as a standalone agenda item,’ he said, describing the hesitation as part of broader attempts to dilute the financial responsibilities of developed countries.

in the second half of the conference Bangladesh will press for its core priorities at the COP30 summit: demanding accessible, grant-based climate finance for adaptation, mitigation, and addressing loss and damage.

as one of the most climate-vulnerable nations, its agenda focused on survival and climate justice, not merely abstract policy. The Bangladesh delegation at the summit is focusing on the key priorities.

these are operationalizing the loss and damage fund, scaling up adaptation finance, ensuring fair, accessible climate finance, advancing the just transition agenda, promotion of green technology transfer and recognition of climate migration. Bangladesh has been strongly advocating for the immediate and full operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund, ensuring direct, unconditional, and fast-tracked access to grant-based (not loan-based) finance for the most affected communities. A central demand was to significantly increase the allocation of global climate finance for adaptation, pushing for at least 50% of all climate finance to be directed toward vulnerable nations’ adaptation needs.

this includes doubling adaptation funding by 2025 and tripling it to at least $120 billion annually by 2030. Bangladesh has called for a new global climate finance goal (New Collective Quantified Goal) that is ambitious, needsbased, predictable, and easily accessible. The country also seeks to retain access to key financial mechanisms after it graduates from Least Developed Country (LDC) status, arguing that vulnerability, not income classification, should be the key determinant for support. Dhaka presented a ‘Just Transition’ agenda to ensure that the shift to a green economy is fair and inclusive, protecting workers’ rights, creating green jobs, and providing social protection as industries decarbonize.

the government sought partnerships and support to scale up renewable energy projects (solar, wind) as part of its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0), aiming for 40% renewable power by 2040. Bangladesh urged international recognition of climate-induced displacement as a humanitarian issue requiring a coordinated global response. Bangladesh’s position aimed to leverage its experience in community-led adaptation and resilience as a powerful case for climate justice and to ensure that global negotiations deliver tangible outcomes for frontline communities.

this time Bangladesh has sent a ministerial delegation to the summit, a scale down from its previous levels. Considering the importance of Bangladesh and the role it has to play for its own survival and the interests of the other climate-vulnerable nations the Bangladesh delegation should have been elevated to a higher level. Bangladesh has many issues to present at such crucial summit and these have to be told boldly in a louder voice.

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan has instructed the relevant agencies to take joint action to control air pollution across the country. All relevant organizations, including the Department of Environment, City Corporation, BRTA and RAJUK, will participate in the campaign to prevent air pollution in Dhaka, she said while addressing an emergency meeting at Pani Bhaban in Dhaka. Rizwana, also Water Resources Adviser, said that no illegal brick kiln will be allowed to operate in the Savar area, which has been declared a degraded air shed to prevent air pollution in Dhaka. The relevant officials have been instructed to take necessary measures in this regard, he added. She said that construction or repair work of buildings should be done under cover, otherwise action will be taken as per the law. Burning of fallen leaves and waste in various parks should be stopped. Strict action will be taken against those who pollute the air by burning garbage, she added.