When asked at a World Energy Congress panel if there are climate change deniers among OPEC’s ranks, Secretary-General Mohammed Barkindo was quick to reply.
“There are no climate change deniers in OPEC,” he said. “I repeat for the umpteenth time, there are no climate deniers in OPEC.”
Barkindo pointed out that OPEC was a core author of the Kyoto Protocol, Paris Agreement, and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. All of its members signed the Paris Agreement, and those that have not yet ratified it are currently in the ratification process.
Still, he will likely have to answer that question again, in the future, as fears of climate change mount, and a solution seems out of reach.Â
“Most stakeholders are lagging behind, but we are doing everything possible, together with global stakeholders, to keep this burning issue, the scourge of our time, at the top of our priorities,” Barkindo added. “Each of our member countries are pursuing policy measures, executing projects and programmes to address climate change.”
“We are focused on being part of the solution,” he said. “OPEC, oil, and the industry must be part of the solution to climate change.”
