Press conference at COP28, Dubai

CHRIS BOWEN: Well, thanks for coming everyone, I’ve run into my friend, Cedric Schuster, the Minister for the Natural Environment of Samoa, so he's joined me for this press conference as well.

Well, of course it's great to be here at COP28. And there are many important issues on the table for this COP, and I'll be participating in leading Australia's delegation in those conversations.

One thing I wanted to touch on this morning is, of course, Australia's announcement overnight our time that we will make a contribution to the Pacific Resilience Fund of $100 million and $50 million for the Green Climate Fund.

Both these funds are important. The Pacific Resilience Fund is particularly important for Australia. This is a fund of the Pacific by the Pacific for the Pacific, designed and suggested by Pacific leaders for Pacific circumstances. It has a goal of $500 million.

Our $100 million contribution is a very, very big step towards that $500 million goal. It is the biggest step so far. Saudi Arabia has made a contribution, the United States has announced a $4.5 million contribution, and our $100 million contribution is very, very important for resilience and dealing with loss and damage in the Pacific.

The Green Climate Fund also, as you know the previous government took the Australian Government out of the Green Climate Fund. We've made a decision to go back in with a modest contribution. I've been very clear in all my public and private statements, including to Director General of the Green Climate Fund, that we want to see the Green Climate Fund doing more and better in the Pacific, and that is why we've made a modest contribution to get back at the table, and of course we'll look forward to working with the Green Climate Fund to see better results in the Pacific, and further progress.

This comes on top of, of course, Australia signing the CETP, the Glasgow Statement on aligning our international aid and investment with net zero, our climate goals, that's been a practice of this government since we came to office, but to formalise that in the Glasgow statement, important. All this is important, important too, in terms of our joint bid to host COP31 with the Pacific, which of course we're going to have ongoing conversations with partners in the Western European group and others about in the coming period and ongoing conversation. But we want to see the Pacific's issues elevated in the international conversation, the COP bid is one way of doing that, and we want to have practical support for the Pacific.

As I said, the Pacific Resilience Fund has been an idea around for several years, wonderful to see it coming to fruition, a $100 million contribution is very, very important for our region.

Cedric, did you want to say anything, and then - Cedric's got to go and do a meeting, but I'm sure he can say a few things and take a few questions.

CEDRIC SCHUSTER: I'm just here on behalf of the Pacific Islands leaders and the ministers who are here to again congratulate and extend our appreciation to the Australian Government for this great contribution, as mentioned by Minister Bowen, $100 million towards the capitalisation that we want to get to $500 million of the Pacific Resilience Fund.

This fund is specifically for the Pacific, and it will help us. We're here, if we're really serious about keeping 1.5 alive and not sinking, this targets our region and it's how we see at the capacity of our countries. So this is a great contribution, it will help us going forward in trying to implement the work.

We've already developed different various plans, although we only contribute to less than 1 per cent of the emissions. Yes, we are at the frontline of all that is happening in climate change. Our islands are sinking, our islands are affected on a daily basis from the different ravages of climate change, so this contribution and this fund will help us in terms of trying to address, adapt, and especially when it comes to loss and damage.

So this is good as well, coming at the - after the announcements of the capitalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund. Although this is, the L&D Fund is globally, but to have specifically funds that target the Pacific, this is a good win for us, and we're grateful to the Australian Government. We hope other countries in our region, our other partners, will come to show their support in this area so we can have our funds start to be implemented. Thank you.

JOURNALIST: Cedric, can you give us some examples of what you might use this money to do?

CEDRIC SCHUSTER: Everything, loss and damage. We are faced, like, as you know, Vanuatu, three cyclones in the span of nine months, so in the loss and damage areas we've already developed our low emission development plans, we've developed our national adaptation plans. There's a lot of plans that we have in all the countries of the Pacific.

Our biggest problem is implementation, access in funding that helps us implement. So this, for Samoa, if you want an example, we developed a coastal infrastructure management, and this is identifying all the risks on our coast, and these are developed by communities and districts. We developed the first one in 2005. We updated them in 2015. Yet, less than 1 per cent of them have been implemented, because there are no funds.

JOURNALIST: So, you'd like to spend less of this in the future, would you also like to see the Australian Government take the strongest possible stance on phasing out fossil fuels at this meeting?

CEDRIC SCHUSTER: We do. We're here with, if we're talking about 1.5, the science is clear. We've had to look at phase outs of fossil fuels and other emissions, but this needs to be coupled with tripling of our renewable energy and doubling energy efficiency. So it has to go together. We can't just look at - one and the other needs to balance so that we are able to really hold the 1.5 that we are concerned about.

JOURNALIST: Minister Bowen, you've had significant announcements recently on behalf of that equation, on getting towards tripling. What about phasing out fossil fuels, or new fossil fuel projects in Australia?

CHRIS BOWEN: Well, in terms of phasing out fossil fuels, of course I want to see a big step forward there at this COP, and I'm actively participating in those discussions with my counterparts, both with the COP President, Dr Al Jaber, and like mindeds, particularly in the Umbrella Group which I Chair.

So we want to see a big step forward on the language on phasing out of fossil fuels. Whether we get there or not, the coming days will tell. But it is important, and it sends an important symbol. And of course, I always see these things, Nick, as Cedric said as well, you can't focus on one side of the equation.

You know, we made the big announcement, as you refer, getting to 82 per cent renewable. That replaces fossil fuels, which are leaving the grid, everybody accepts   anybody sensible accepts   not everyone accepts, but everyone sensible accepts they're leaving the grid and need to be replaced to ensure energy reliability.

So I see all these things as hand in glove and that's what this international conversation's all about.

JOURNALIST: Do we have a floor or a baseline beyond which will be difficult for us to sort of accept the strongest language possible, the kind of thing being pushed by, you know, as in "phase out fossil fuels" full stop?

CHRIS BOWEN: Again, look, these conversations have started. I am not going to get into the, you know, finer details of what country's saying what in the negotiations one on one at the moment, other than to say Australia is participating, unlike previous arrangements under previous management, very constructively to try and get a step forward in language on mitigation, which is what we're talking, through to global stocktake conversation.

We are, as part of that conversation we are supporting a strengthening of the language, and that includes the conversation around phase out of fossil fuels.

JOURNALIST: Minister, Copernicus, the EU's Earth Observation Agency this morning, came out and said that 2023 was going to be the hottest year on record, even though we're still in the aftermath of [indistinct]. What do you make of that?

CHRIS BOWEN: Well, no surprises there, Daniel. I mean we've had the hottest day, we had our hottest month, we had the hottest week, we had a hottest month after the hottest month on repeat this year. So I'm particularly unsurprised by that. And that underpins the needs for more action, for more action domestically. You know, there are people that wander around in Federal Parliament saying, "We can wait till 2050, we can pause."  That's the exact language these people use, as if the last 10 years weren't pause enough, you know, saying "We need a pause and we can wait till 2050." No, we cannot. We can't wait domestically; we can't wait internationally.

JOURNALIST: Minister, are you aware of unilateral trade actions such as the Europe CBAM and the IRA are affecting negotiations between the parties?

CHRIS BOWEN: There's about 6,000 things that are involved in conversations and negotiations at the moment, you know.  I can   there's mitigation, there's loss and damage, which has been a very good breakthrough, there's been adaptation, ongoing conversations, there's the global stocktake, there's all sorts of things, as you would expect in a plenary session with 190 countries participating being raised, not all of them will make the final communique, but we'll see how we go in the coming days.

JOURNALIST: How confident are you in getting what you want?

CHRIS BOWEN: Quietly confident, but you know, a long way to go.

JOURNALIST: Your commitment on climate finance, $150 million in total, is less than the Abbott government in 2014 to a Green Climate Fund. Is Australia going to have to do more, and if so, when will we hear about it?

CHRIS BOWEN: Well, I mean I don't regard 150 million as a small step forward, considering particularly the 100 million direct to the Pacific - direct to the Pacific - for and by and with the Pacific.

Of course we'll continue to do more when and as we judge the circumstances appropriate. But it also should be seen in the context of all the other announcements we've made, including the lifting of Pacific aid, the focusing of Pacific aid on climate adaptation building to 80 per cent.

I mean this is not a one off announcement, it's part of a long series of announcements of the refocusing of Australia's international investment and the signing, therefore, of the Glasgow Statement, CETP, is an important, if you like, in some ways symbolic, but a locking in of that approach.

JOURNALIST: And has Australia decided that they will not be committing directly to the new Loss and Damage Fund.

CHRIS BOWEN: No, I've made the announcements I'm making today. We'll continue to engage with the Loss and Damage Fund. We asked for, for example, a minimum allocation for small island developing States and the least developed countries. It has been agreed there will be a minimum allocation. It has not yet been agreed what that percentage is, so we want to engage in that conversation going forward, and we'll see how that conversation goes.

JOURNALIST: The Opposition wants to make this COP all about nuclear energy as an alternative --  
 
CHRIS BOWEN: God love em.
 
JOURNALIST: -- for Australia in the world. 
 
CHRIS BOWEN: God love em.

JOURNALIST: What, I mean what's wrong with just sort of, if you're - even though you're sceptical about it yourself, why not just lift the prohibition and see what the markets --

CHRIS BOWEN: They're in a different world. I mean nuclear energy is not involved in the multilateral conversations. When I meet with counterparts, even those who are nuclear countries say, "If I had your renewables, your renewable potential, I wouldn't be going down the nuclear road." They're off on a fantasy, it's a pipe dream wrapped in a fantasy, accompanied by an illusion, nuclear power for Australia, and I don't have time for distractions.

We have 73 months to 2030. Even the National Party and the Liberal Party now apparently accept that a nuclear power station in Australia could not open by 2030. I mean it's completely irrelevant for the conversation about 2030, and as I said before, David Littleproud says, "Oh, we can start in 2045 or something, you know, we've got time."  We don't have time. He's wrong. He's wrong on reliability, he's wrong on the climate, he's dead plain wrong.

JOURNALIST: Minister, the UAE has invested a fair chunk of money building a solar thermal plant just south of Dubai, and it's a big one, about 700 megawatts, it can generate, I think for up to 15 hours after the sun stops, the sun [indistinct]. What's your view about solar thermal?

CHRIS BOWEN: I think it's got a role to play. We've invested in the solar, and their solar thermal developments in Australia, so we've invested in solar thermal as well. They do everything in big scale in UAE, as you would have noticed. We invest in the right scale for our country. It's got a role to play, that's why we've invested in it.

JOURNALIST: Does the Capacity Investment Scheme, do you think, change anything?

CHRIS BOWEN: Let's see the bids come forward for the Capacity Investment Scheme, and if it's dispatchable or renewable, it can bid in. 

JOURNALIST: Minister, it seems like there might have been some movement on where COP29 next year will be held now. Does that - if that happens, does that mean there might be some focus again on whether Australia and the Pacific would be [indistinct] for instance?
 
CHRIS BOWEN: Yes, there has been - the main conversation, any conversation I've been involved in, the main conversation has been about next year, you're quite right, there does appear to have been a breakthrough on that, so that's welcome. That's welcome.
 
But the fact that only now are we determining who's hosting this event next year does tell you that these conversations can be on a different timeframe. But you know, we have a good solid bid, and we'll engage in, continue to engage in those conversations.
 
JOURNALIST: Have you given up on finding out at this COP whether you, Australia will get COP31?

CHRIS BOWEN: As I said, look, as for the timelines, they can move around, I'm not too stressed about it. As I said, only in the last 24 hours have we determined - have we found out, all of us, where we'll be this time next year. I'm sure you welcome the news too. So 2026 is not in the top one, two or three issues for the global negotiations just right now as we speak, 'cause we're all focused, but we're continuing to make our case.

JOURNALIST: Are you surprised by that breakthrough on Monday of [indistinct].

CHRIS BOWEN: If I - yeah, well, a little. But the fact that, Azerbaijan and Armenia through the purposes of a COP, you know, strike a reached agreement does give you some reminder that there's cause for a little bit of hope in the world.

Okay. Thanks. Got to get to a plenary session.