How Do Lobby Groups Infiltrate Global Climate Conferences?

SadaNews - A new research study has revealed that over 5,000 lobby groups in the fossil fuel sector gained access to the United Nations climate summits over the past four years, a period marked by an increase in catastrophic extreme weather events, insufficient climate action, and a record expansion in oil and gas production.

The study analyzes the presence of fossil fuel lobby groups known to have participated in the Glasgow negotiations (COP26), Sharm El-Sheikh (COP27), Dubai (COP28), and Baku (COP29).

According to the study published by the British newspaper The Guardian, lobby groups representing the interests of the oil, gas, and coal industries, which bear the greatest responsibility for climate collapse according to the study, were allowed to participate in the annual climate negotiations, where states are supposed to come in good faith and commit to ambitious policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The study revealed that nearly 5,350 lobbyists who mixed with world leaders and climate negotiators in recent years worked on behalf of at least 859 organizations operating in the fossil fuel sector, including trade groups, institutions, and 180 oil, gas, and coal companies involved in every part of the supply chain from exploration and production to distribution and equipment.

According to an analysis conducted by the coalition "kick big polluters out," which includes 450 organizations working to prevent the fossil fuel industry from obstructing and delaying global climate action, only 90 fuel companies that sent lobbyists to climate talks between 2021 and 2024 were responsible for more than half of the 57% of oil and gas produced last year.

These companies, which include many of the world's most profitable private and public oil and gas firms, produced 33,699 million barrels of oil equivalent in 2024, enough to cover the entire area of Spain with a one-centimeter thick layer of oil.

The same 90 companies also represent about 63% of all short-term fossil fuel expansion projects, which are preparing for exploration and production, according to recent numbers and data covering more than 1,700 companies that account for over 90% of global oil and gas activity.

If these expansion projects are implemented, these companies would produce enough oil to cover 2,623,000 square kilometers with a one-centimeter thick layer, which includes the entire area of seven European countries: France, Spain, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Norway combined.

Corporate Interests and the Planet

The findings have reignited calls to prevent fossil fuel companies and other major polluters from participating in the annual climate negotiations, amid growing scientific evidence that the world has failed to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

"This information clearly reveals corporate control over the global climate process... The space that should be dedicated to science and people has transformed into a massive carbon business hall," says Adelson Vieira, a spokesperson for the Amazon Working Group, to The Guardian.

He adds, "While forest communities struggle to survive, the very companies causing climate collapse are buying credentials and political influence to continue expanding their fossil empires."

For her part, Brina Eloothander, the lead coordinator of the Indigenous Environmental Network and a member of the "KBPO" organization, states that Indigenous people are also suffering from the climate chaos on our lands, with increased flooding, wildfires, and extreme heat waves. We must take the "For Sale" sign off "Mother Earth" and prevent lobby groups from the oil and gas sector from entering COP conferences.

The growing anger over the lack of meaningful action by the richest and most polluting countries in the world has been exacerbated by revelations that the fossil fuel industry seems to have gained greater access to climate talks compared to most countries.

Last year in Baku, 1,773 registered fossil fuel lobbyists attended the summit in Azerbaijan, which was 70% more than the total number of representatives from the ten most climate-vulnerable countries combined, totaling 1,033 delegates.

However, the true scale of fossil fuel influence is undoubtedly deeper, as lobbying data excludes executives and other company representatives in the official delegations of countries directly participating in the secret negotiations, as well as those attending as guests to governments, known as surplus delegates.

The largest number of known lobbyists in recent years represented state-owned companies from the UAE, Russia, and Azerbaijan.

Many of the world's most profitable fossil fuel companies were also present at recent COP summits, at a time when governments faced immense public pressure - but failed - to agree on phasing out fossil fuels despite the deadly climate impacts affecting every corner of the planet.

Between 2021 and 2024, Shell sent a total of 37 lobbyists, BP sent 36 delegates, ExxonMobil sent 32 delegates, and Chevron sent 20 delegates. Over the past five years, the four major oil companies have collectively earned profits exceeding $420 billion.

Darren Woods, the CEO of Exxon, participated in an event launching COP30 in Brasília, organized by the American Chamber of Commerce under the theme "Pragmatic Business Solutions for Carbon Accounting and Emissions Reduction." The United States, like other countries, withdrew from the Paris climate agreements and did not send a national delegation to the summit.

Petrobras, the predominantly state-owned Brazilian multinational company that has sent at least 28 lobbyists to the last four climate summits, recently received a license to conduct exploratory oil drilling in the sea off the Amazon, which is home to many Indigenous communities and about 10% of the known species on the planet.

A spokesperson for the company stated: "Petrobras will be present at COP30, as it was present at previous talks since it recognizes the opportunity to discuss sustainable models.. The company’s participation in COP30 reinforces its commitment to follow and contribute to international discussions on climate and energy."

Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, and Chevron did not respond to requests for comments.

Counterpressures

After years of campaigns led by civil society organizations, delegates to this year's COP are required to publicly disclose the source of funding for their participation and ensure their goals align with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

However, the new transparency requirement excludes anyone from official government delegations or surplus delegations, and calls for tightening conflict of interest protections to limit the influence of the industrial sector have not received adequate response, according to rights advocates.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the UN Climate Change agency said: "The Secretariat has taken concrete steps in 2023, and again this year, to enhance the transparency of participants at COP."

He added that while no one COP is expected to solve the climate crisis overnight, achieving further improvements is an ongoing journey we will continue to support, keeping in mind that national governments alone have the authority to determine the members of their delegations."

In this context, Mohamed Sarf, executive director of the Palestinian Institute for Climate Strategy, stated that "the new rules are a welcome start, but they come decades too late, and transparency without exclusion is merely a charade. It cannot be claimed that this process has been repaired by the very companies that are burning the planet and fueling wars."

He added that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change must shift from disclosure to exclusion.. Without reform, this process will not save the world, but will contribute to its burial, as he put it.

Source: The Guardian