Simon Stiell used a New York keynote to argue that clean power is already paying a dividend, while warning technology companies that AI’s appetite for energy is eroding public support.
Renewable energy helped the world avoid almost half a trillion US dollars in fossil fuel costs last year, the UN’s top climate official has said. Simon Stiell, executive secretary of UN Climate Change, made the claim in a keynote speech in New York on 21 September.
He spoke at the Build Clean Now summit and cited new data from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), out the same day. They show renewable capacity additions hit a record 693GW last year. Stiell said that was more than half the installed power capacity of the entire United States.
He called the avoided fossil fuel costs a “mammoth decarbonisation dividend”. By his reckoning, the sum is larger than the national GDP of more than three quarters of countries on Earth.
Progress used to counter disinformation
Stiell framed the numbers as ammunition. “Pointing to progress is not about complacency. It is essential,” he said. He added that it helps “combat disinformation and show that this is a fight we can win.”
He also pointed to investment. Clean energy drew more than USD 2 trillion last year alone, he said. Meanwhile, UN-convened cooperation and national efforts have cut projected warming from well over 4C to 2.6C. Stiell called that undeniable progress, although still short of what is needed to avoid catastrophe.
Still, he accepted that exceeding the 1.5C limit is now guaranteed, at least temporarily. A recent UN Environment Programme report says the same. So the task, he said, is to build resilience and cut emissions faster to bring warming back below 1.5C.
COP31 and the Action Agenda
Much of the speech looked ahead to COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, in November. Stiell said the Turkish presidency, working closely with Australia, has set Action Agenda targets. One aims for electricity to reach 35% of global energy use by 2035.
He urged businesses and investors to arrive in Antalya with projects ready to move. That includes schemes in developing countries, where the UN carbon market now offers new channels for investment. In the same vein, the presidency has already launched a bridge to turn pledges into bankable projects.
Stiell also floated changes to the COP process itself. UN Climate Change is looking at whether countries could name a single representative to coordinate the transition across government and industry. It is also exploring an Action Agenda closing plenary alongside the negotiation plenaries.
Clean industry and carbon removal
The Industrial Transition Accelerator hosted the event. Stiell noted that 19 commercial-scale clean industry projects reached final investment decisions in the first half of this year. Together, they’re worth an estimated USD 43 billion.
He then turned to carbon dioxide removal. Bringing temperatures back to 1.5C will need deeper emission cuts and removals as well, he said. However, he stressed that removals must come on top of the shift away from fossil fuels. “Simply ignoring CDR is no longer viable,” he said.
A warning to AI companies
Stiell saved his sharpest words for the tech sector. He said energy-hungry AI is driving up pollution from coal, oil and gas while pushing up energy bills. “AI leaders are now on thin ice when it comes to license to operate,” he said.
He noted that data centres are being put on hold in several US states and elsewhere. So he called on chief executives and boards to set credible climate targets and invest in efficiency. He also asked them to disclose energy and water use and to power data centres with renewables.
Stiell linked the argument back to household budgets. He cited one estimate on fuel prices. Since the Middle East conflict began, fossil fuel dependence has added more than USD 100 billion to US consumers’ gas and diesel bills. As a result, he argued, leaders who want to tackle inflation must also cut fossil fuel costs and emissions.
Renewables now lead the power mix
Stiell closed on market forces. Renewables are now cheaper in almost all places, he said. Last year they overtook coal as the world’s top electricity source.
He said countries resisting the transition are sending new industries, jobs and wages to competitor economies. Even so, he warned that winning the fight will take far more. “Now’s the time to double down on climate multilateralism,” he said.
