World’s major oil producers spurn fossil fuel phase-out in net zero push – research

World’s major oil producers spurn fossil fuel phase-out in net zero push – research

None of the world's major oil and gas-producing countries have plans to eventually stop drilling for those fuels, despite many having pledged to reach net zero emissions, according to data shared with Reuters on Tuesday. The Net Zero Tracker, an independent data consortium including Oxford University, said its findings laid bare the gap between the targets countries have set to avoid disastrous levels of climate change and their real-world plans to continue producing CO2-emitting energy. "This proliferation of 'net zero' ambition without the commitment towards fossil fuel phase-out highlights the need for entities to determine how these targets will be achieved," said research co-author Natasha Lutz from the University of Oxford. Governments at the U.N.'s COP28 climate summit in Dubai are debating whether to agree for the first time to phase out CO2-emitting fossil fuels, the main cause of climate change. The data shared with Reuters showed 69 of the world's oil producing countries, including Saudi Arabia, the United States, Russia, China and COP28 host the United Arab Emirates, have pledged to reach net zero emissions. But only three minor producers - Denmark, Spain and France - have set out plans to eventually stop drilling, the researchers said. Denmark and