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Saudi Arabia aims of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2060

WION Web Team
New DelhiUpdated: Oct 23, 2021, 10:17 PM IST
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A handout picture provided by the Saudi Royal Palace on April 27, 2021, shows Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during an interview with the Middle East Broadcasting Center (MBC) in the capital Riyadh to mark the fifth anniversary of his vision 2030. Photograph:(AFP)

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Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced in brief scripted remarks at the start of the first Saudi Green Initiative Forum

Saudi Arabia has announced it aims to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2060. Also, it aims to double its annual target to reduce carbon emissions. 

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced in brief scripted remarks at the start of the first Saudi Green Initiative Forum.

The Prince said, "The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia aims to reach zero-net emissions by 2060 under its circular carbon economy programme … while maintaining the kingdom’s leading role in strengthening security and stability of global oil markets."

According to a report by The Guardian, the executive director of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol said, "I welcome Saudi Arabia’s announcement of a #NetZero target. Countries will get to net zero via different paths, but the threat of climate change is universal. Pledges from major fossil-fuel producers, and their implementation, are vital to reach international climate goals.”

The kingdom is estimated to emit about 600m tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. This is more than France and slightly less than Germany. Also, the country will aim to reduce its emissions. However, it will continue to pump and export fossil fuels to Asia and other regions.

This comes in over a week before the start of the global Cop26 conference. Meanwhile, UK president-designate of the Cop26 talks, Alok Sharma, has said that achieving a global climate deal in Glasgow in the next three weeks will be harder than signing the Paris agreement of 2015. 

He further said that the task would be to get nearly 200 countries to implement stringent cuts to their greenhouse gas emissions, keeping in mind the increase in global temperature to within 1.5C of pre-industrial levels.