CEM at COP28

Description: Super-efficient cooling appliances, such as air conditioners, have the potential to revolutionise energy consumption patterns, significantly reduce electricity bills, and curtail carbon emissions. The “SEAD: Large Scale Deployment of Super-Efficient Appliances for Cooling and Doubling of Efficiency Progress” side event aims to advance the global energy efficiency agenda, taking a deeper dive into cooling appliance policy as a tool for accelerating clean energy action.

Location: The Saudi Pavilion

Description: Launch of the new CEM initiative “Supercharging Battery Storage Deployment”, which will aim to boost stationary battery storage development and deployment and reduce technology cost, through international cooperation and alignment as appropriate, to build a diversified, sustainable, responsible, secure and transparent supply chain, to promote grid stability and reliability and to support the integration of renewable energy globally.

Location: MR12 South Hall room, blue zone

Description: Reducing emissions from aviation, maritime, and heavy industry requires the use energy-dense, low-emissions molecular fuels such as ammonia, hydrogen, methanol, and renewable hydrocarbons. This event will explore and define actions that G20/CEM countries and Initiatives can and should take to enable increased production and use of renewable, low-carbon fuels across their many uses.

Location: The Saudi Pavilion

Description: The Cement sector is responsible for 6-7% of global CO₂ emissions. Carbon management is a vital decarbonization lever for the industry. At this opening event of the series, industry’s current plans and main challenges for CCUS deployment are presented and discussed. Government policy views are also presented.

Location: Global Cement and Concrete Association Pavilion

Description: Carbon Dioxide Removal, CDR, is a key part of the climate change mitigation toolkit, enabling large-scale removal of CO₂ from the atmosphere on the road to our net-zero future. Technological CDR approaches such as DACS and BECCS have rapidly advanced over the past years, however they remain costly and therefore significant cost reduction challenges remain. Simultaneously, a specific policy and incentive structure is required to drive removals of CO₂, including robust measurement, reporting and verification. At this event we bring expert speakers together to discuss the state of play with technological removal technologies, the outlook for their deployment and the market mechanisms that can help incentivize high-quality removals. The event is co-hosted by CEM CCUS Initiative and Mission Innovation CDR Mission.

Location: The Saudi Pavilion

Description: The availability of CO₂ transport and storage infrastructure is a key prerequisite for effective CCUS deployment in the cement sector. In this panel the issues of infrastructure buildout and strategic CO2 hubs are discussed. How can hubs best serve the global cement sector?

Location: Global Cement and Concrete Association Pavilion

Description: At CEM 2023 in Goa, the Transforming Solar Supply Chains Initiative released three policy briefs with concrete recommendations to address these challenges. This workshop will build on this work to further engage private sector stakeholders and policymakers, particularly with regard to international collaboration on supply chain development. The objectives of the session are:

1. to build support for fostering global resilient supply chains; 
2. to provide concrete actions/objectives for policymakers; and 
3. to further collaboration among international stakeholders. 

Location: ISA Pavilion

Agenda:

Description: Organized by the CEM Empowering People Initiative, the event will bring together representatives from the public sector, philanthropies and the private sector to have a panel discussion on mobilizing climate talent.

Location: Just Transition Pavilion 

Panellists:

• Maroš Šefčovič, Executive Vice President, European Commission 
• Allen Blue, Co-Founder, LinkedIn
• Luis Alverado, Global Strategic Engagement Lead, Centre for Nature and Climate, World Economic Forum
• Deeana Ahmad, Chief Strategy Officer, Our Next Energy (ONE)
• Danny Kennedy, CEO, New Energy Nexus (NEX)
• Charlie McElwee, Vice President of Programs, ClimateWorks Foundation
• Annya Schneider, European Lead, Bloomberg Philanthropies
• Jean-Francois Gagne, Head of Secretariat, Clean Energy Ministerial

Description: Finding financing for CCUS in the cement sector is going to be highly dependent on enabling policy frameworks set by governments. These frameworks will include, inter alia, national/regional CO₂ emission reduction and decarbonization visions, economy-wide policies such as carbon pricing, specific incentives for carbon capture technologies and policies to create demand for clean products. This panel will discuss how such policy frameworks are being implemented and how they can be accelerated. 

Location: Global Cement and Concrete Association Pavilion 

Description: This High-Level Ministerial-CEO Roundtable on Hydrogen will mark the launch of the flagship COP28 initiatives designed to accelerate commercialisation of hydrogen projects facilitating the transition to net zero and unlock the climate and socio-economic benefits of cross-border supply chains. This roundtable will feature the launch of the flagship Declaration of Intent on Mutual Recognition of Certification Schemes for Hydrogen and Derivatives and the ISO methodology for GHG emissions assessment of hydrogen. Decision-makers and industry leaders will spotlight actionable commitments in an inaugural Public-Private Action Statement on Cross-Border Trade with the International Hydrogen Trade Forum.

Location: TBC

Description: The objective of the event is to showcase a mapping of national energy scenarios and climate strategies for G20 countries that have an LTES, LT-LEDS and NDC. It is vital that policy messages resulting from these planning documents are aligned with each other. Energy and climate policy are becoming increasingly more interlinked, and misaligned messages from national authorities on each field can lead to uncertainty for potential investors in the energy transition. 

Location: UAE Pavilion

Description: The IDDI member government representatives will announce renewed commitments and progress made towards the Green Public Procurement Pledge. A communique will be shared.

Location: Meeting Room 11, Blue Zone

Description: The IDDI’s representatives will present its new White Paper: Pathway Towards Harmonization of GHG Accounting Standards for Steel and Cement.

Location: Trade House Pavilion

Description: The Carbon Management Challenge (CMC) is launched at COP on 5 December. The Challenge gathers a coalition of willing governments to drive carbon management technologies to Giga-tonne scale by 2030. At this event, industry, government and finance sector representatives will discuss the role and implications of the Challenge, and how stakeholders can best take part in and support the Challenge

Location: Global Cement and Concrete Association

Description: De-fossilizing fuels for heavy industry and transport, including aviation and maritime, is fundamental to achieving Net Zero Emissions. This public panel discussion will explore progress in Bio-to-X and Power-to-X and distil lessons for countries and hard-to-abate sectors eager to produce and use cutting-edge fuels that complement hydrogen production and use. Panellists will discuss ways in which CEM Biofuture Platform Initiative countries and members of the Biofuture Campaign can work with industry and government officials to accelerate the immediate uptake of renewable cutting-edge fuels.

Location: Danish Pavilion

Description: The primary objective of this event is to initiate a robust and inclusive dialogue among CEM members and other key stakeholders, fostering collaboration and synergy to overcome challenges in the widespread deployment of battery storage technologies. The event will feature a comprehensive discussion on priorities and plans that will guide the implementation of this groundbreaking initiative. By bringing together a diverse array of stakeholders, the event seeks to catalyse collective action and pave the way for a future where battery storage plays a pivotal role in advancing the global transition to clean and renewable energy sources.

Location: Australian Pavilion

Description: The Gulf Region countries are in a unique position to rapidly scale up carbon management. The countries have a vital interest in reducing the carbon footprint of hydrocarbons, a large CO2 storage potential and a high level of existing industrial expertise in carbon management. CCUS or carbon management can enable clean hydrogen, clean steel and cement, as well as clean power in the region. Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) is also part of the potential toolkit. At this event, representatives from the countries in the region as well as expert organisations will discuss their strategies and action plans to deploy carbon management.

Location: Saudi Arabia Pavilion  

Description: This session is focused on the central role jobs and skills will play in the fight against climate change/quest for net zero. As LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky says, “Climate change is a human capital problem.” LinkedIn’s 2023 Green Skills Report has a few key findings: 

• Only one-in-eight workers globally has at least one green skills 
• The LinkedIn Hiring Rate for workers with a green skill is 29% higher than that of all workers.  
• Green jobs growth is happening twice as fast as green talent growth. 
• Earlier this year, Canada adopted the Interim Sustainable Jobs Plan, a crucial strategy that explicitly ties Canada’s sustainability goals with economic goals. The plan was developed by Ministries of Labour, Climate Change, and Natural Resources, a type of cross-agency collaboration that is rare around the world.  

Location: Canada Pavilion

Description: Shaping the Future of Shipping Summit will take place in the middle weekend of the main COP28 meeting on 9th & 10th December, in and around the Museum of the Future. Shaping the Future of Shipping will use COP28 to showcase shipping as a dynamic and leading hard-to-abate sector and will focus on the tangible progress being made in the maritime energy transition, highlight the work of cross-sectoral collaborations that can potentially change global shipping and share the lessons being learnt so the industry can move forward to deliver sustainable economic growth and profit. During the Summit, CEM Hubs initiative will host a fireside change to facilitate public-private dialogue. 

Location: Museum of the Future, Dubai