Phasing out fossil fuels among options on table for COP28 climate talks

Countries at the COP28 climate conference are considering calling for a formal phase-out of fossil fuels as part of the UN summit's final deal to tackle global warming, a draft negotiating text seen on Tuesday shows.

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The proposal is certain to spark heated debate among the nearly 200 countries attending the two-week conference in Dubai, with Western governments pushing for the language to be included, while oil and gas producers are keen to leave it out.

Research published on Tuesday showed global carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels are set to hit a record high this year, fuelling concerns among scientists that efforts to combat climate change are not enough to avert its worst impacts.

The draft of what could be the final agreement from COP28, released by the U.N. climate body on Tuesday, proposed an orderly and just phase-out of fossil fuels" which if adopted would mark the first global deal to end the oil age.

On the COP28 main stage, the CEOs of several major energy firms argued in favour of oil and gas, highlighting their progress in areas such as cutting the greenhouse gas methane.

"We are big guys and we can do big things. We can deliver results and we will have to report them very soon," said Jean Paul Prates, CEO of Brazil's state-run oil company Petrobras.