Asia Pacific Climate Commitments at COP26

Photo by Karwai Tang/ UK Government

In November 2021, the UN COP26 conference gathered at Glasgow, Scotland with participants from nearly 200 countries. The focus was to urge governments to set and maintain progress on country-level global warming targets to stay in accordance with the Paris Agreement adopted in 2015.   Based on current trends calculated by the IEA, temperatures are expected to increase by 2.6 degrees by 2100, compared to pre-industrial levels, and the Paris Agreement was adopted to limit this warming to 1.5 degrees.  The COP26 agreement addresses this issue by pressing countries to enact more impactful 2030 commitments, urging nations that haven't already done so to create mid-century goals to meet net zero emissions. For the first time, the verbiage in the pact also explicitly asserts a shift away from coal and fossil fuels while also highlighting the importance of nature’s role in mitigating climate change impacts.

The APAC region is responsible for 52% of global carbon dioxide emissions and several key emitters from this region adopted pledges and commitments in support of the 1.5 degree global warming goal. For companies with supply operations and chains in the Asia Pacific region, these commitments help demonstrate the trajectory of country-level decarbonization efforts. We have summarized a few noteworthy commitments from the APAC region below:

China

The world’s largest emitter, China, committed to creating a plan on controlling and reducing methane emissions before the 2022 COP27 in Egypt. It also committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. But disappointingly, as a nation that heavily relies on coal power generation, it backed the limited amendment to change the verbiage in the Glasgow Climate Pact from coal “phase out” to coal “phase down.”

Japan

With 90% of Japan’s energy coming from fossil fuels, it accounts for a large portion of global emissions. The country adopted the Global Methane Pledge which aims to reduce methane emissions 30% by 2030, however it did not commit to phasing out coal or shifting to non-emitting vehicles. Japan also pledged to end deforestation by 2030 and committed to reaching net zero emissions by 2050. Japan committed an additional USD $10 billion to climate finance which brings its total climate financial commitments to USD $70 billion from 2021 to 2025.

South Korea

Despite being the fifth largest coal power generator globally, South Korea committed to transitioning away from coal generated power and increasing renewable power in their energy mix by 2030. Like Japan, it joined the Global Methane Pledge but did not commit to the pledge to transition to zero emission vehicles. South Korea also pledged to end deforestation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2030, and achieve net zero by 2050.

India

While India’s per capita emissions are significantly lower than that of countries like Canada, Australia, or the US, the country's total emissions make it the second largest emitter in Asia. By 2030, India commits to meet 50% of its energy mix with renewables while reducing carbon intensity by up to 45%. And by 2070, the nation is targeting to achieve net zero. Other notable commitments include shifting to zero emission vehicles by 2040, achieving sustainable agricultural practices, and phasing down coal.

Carbon Intensity of Electricity Grids in Asia. Copyright 2021 by Apala Group.

Indonesia

Being home to the third largest rainforest, Indonesia committed to halting and reversing forest loss and degradation by 2030. Alongside Japan and South Korea, Indonesia also joined the Global Methane Pledge. As a major coal exporter and a top 10 nation for coal power generation, the country committed to ending coal use but not to ending new projects for coal power generation.

Vietnam

Vietnam is currently the ninth largest coal power generating nation, but it signed the coal phase out pledge and the pledge to build no new coal generating power plants. Like Indonesia, Vietnam also pledged to reverse forest loss and reduce methane emissions. However, it did not sign the commitment to transition to zero emission vehicles.

Philippines

With a moratorium on new coal power at present, the Philippines pledged to increase clean power generation as well as increase energy efficiency. The country partnered with Indonesia and the Asian Development Bank to announce a new mechanism to transition both countries to clean energy. Additionally, it pledged a shift to sustainable agriculture, reduce methane emissions, and halt and reverse deforestation. As a country with relatively low contributions to climate change but higher vulnerability to climate change impacts, the Philippines emphasized the need for climate justice.

Thailand

Thailand is the least emitting country on this list but has a heavy reliance on fossil fuel generated electricity. The country has committed to carbon neutrality by 2065-2070, but not to reducing methane, transitioning away from coal, halting deforestation, or shifting to zero emission vehicles.

Next Steps

Looking forward to COP27 in Egypt this November, the stated emphasis will be on climate adaptation and damage mitigation in communities that are already experiencing the brunt of the climate change consequences. Prior to COP27, Indonesia is hosting the 2022 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction to discuss strategies to manage and reduce disaster loss. It will be interesting to see if these factors play a role in how COP27 unfolds, particularly when it comes to climate financing provided by wealthy countries to poorer nations, including those in APAC that lack the resources to cope with imminent climate disasters.