Albanese skips fossil fuels in COP31 speech, draws criticism

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese delivered a speech at the COP31 climate summit in Antalya, Turkey, on Wednesday without mentioning fossil fuels, despite the UN secretary general's call for no new coal. He touted Australia's renewable energy successes but faced criticism for ignoring the nation's massive coal industry. Albanese highlighted Australia's doubling of renewable energy generation in six years, now accounting for half of the country's electricity, and its leadership in rooftop solar and batteries. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, speaking just before, stressed that keeping the 1.5C goal requires no new coal and a 75% cut in coal power by 2035. Australia is the world's second-largest coal exporter and largest exporter of coal for steelmaking, with 38 fossil fuel projects approved since Albanese took office in 2022. Critics, including former Greens leader Adam Bandt and Climate Analytics CEO Bill Hare, called the omission a "snub" and "disturbing," while Australia and Turkey pushed for a global goal of 35% electricity in final energy use by 2035.