MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Clean energy summit ready to start virtually in Santiago, Chile

“We have to take the necessary actions,” said Jobet.

The Global Clean Energy Summit is to be held for the first time in Latin America and it is due to span from Monday, May 31, through Friday, June 4 in Santiago, Chile, albeit in a virtual format.

Leaders from 27 countries will convene at the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM 12) which will be held concurrently with the Mission Innovation Ministerial (MI-6).

The main topics to be discussed are decarbonisation, electromobility, green hydrogen and the innovations necessary to achieve carbon neutrality.

“We are at a turning point, in which we have to take the necessary actions to push the energy transformation to achieve a real change that allows reducing global warming before it is too late,” said Chile's Minister of Energy and Mining Juan Carlos Jobet.

“This summit seeks precisely to reach agreements that allow for the adoption of the technologies and innovations necessary to achieve this and is the prelude to what will be COP 26 in a few more months.”

The UK will host the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow on 1 – 12 November 2021.

Chile's summit will feature ministerial plenaries, thematic events and talks by climate change experts in addition to a virtual fair of 36 leading companies and institutions in energy transformation.

Among the nearly 100 leaders and experts who will attend the Chile meeting are Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the UN; Patricia Espinosa, Executive Director of the UNFCC; Ursula Von der Leyen, President of the European Commission; US Special Delegate for the Environment John Kerry; and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Other guests will be the president of the World Energy Council, Angela Willkinson and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

“Chile is the first country in South America to organize the most important clean energy and innovation summit in the world. We have prepared a high-level event, which for the first time will be open to the entire community. The goal of being carbon neutral as a planet does not It is a ”race won“ and this week of activities will be the key to listening, learning and redoubling our efforts to win it. I invite you to be part of this challenge,” Jobet explained.

Mission Innovation (MI) is the leading intergovernmental platform working to accelerate clean energy innovation. It is successfully stimulating global collaboration and has increased annual investments by nearly US $ 7 million since 2015.

Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) is a high-level global forum to promote policies and programs that advance clean energy technologies, share lessons learned and best practices, and foster the transition to a global clean energy economy. Initiatives are based on areas of common interest among participating governments and other stakeholders.

According to Jobet, “the most developed countries are looking favourably on all the energy management that Chile is carrying out today,” which in a few years has managed to diversify its energy matrix by moving towards Non-Conventional Renewable Energy.

“As hosts of the most important event on clean energy and innovation, we believe that this instance will be very valuable to continue advancing in an ambitious energy transition, in which the different countries can share good practices, coordinate concrete actions that we allow us to go faster and be efficient to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.”