Australia and Turkey are scheduled to co-host the annual U.N. climate conference, COP31, in November this year. Turkey will act as the host nation, with Murat Kurum, its Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, serving as the COP31 president, while Australia’s Climate Change and Energy Minister, Chris Bowen, will lead negotiations.
The COP31 Electrification Agenda
As reported by TIME, the co-hosts have established a clear agenda to highlight the urgent need to electrify economies. A primary objective of the event will be for participating nations to establish a target of achieving 35% electrification by 2035, up from the current 21% of global energy demand met by electricity. This initiative arrives as the U.N. warns that limiting global warming to below 2° Celsius by the century’s end requires an 18% emission reduction within the next three years and 45% by 2035.
Responding to a TIME survey on the climate movement, Murat Kurum stated that recent energy disruptions have underscored the risks of imported fuel dependence. Kurum explained that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz created a new opportunity for energy transition during the second energy crisis in five years. With emerging technologies becoming cheaper and more mature, Kurum stated that energy security, affordability, and sustainability align through electrification.
Pushing the 35-by-35 Target
As the COP31 Presidency, Turkey is advancing electrification through the deployment of electric vehicles, heat pumps, cooking stoves, industrial heaters, and motors, backed by upgraded infrastructure. The presidency launched the COP31 Global Electrification Pledge to increase electricity’s share of global final energy consumption from roughly 23% to 35% by 2035.
According to findings from the International Energy Agency cited by Kurum, achieving this “35-by-35” target could save fuel-importing countries more than $400 billion annually in import bills. Kurum added that the pledge will serve as a political focal point to raise electrification’s global profile.
Kurum noted that governments should integrate electrification targets into national plans and invest accordingly, companies should electrify fleets, buildings, and industrial processes, and households can adopt energy-efficient electric technologies. COP31 is positioned as the moment to ignite the electrification movement with available technology and strengthening economics.
