It wouldn’t be a climate COP without negotiations going down to the wire. This year’s talks will likely go into the wee hours of tomorrow morning as delegates try to push through an agreement. The talks are particularly tough as delegates try to increase climate funding for developing nations 10 fold – from $100 billion to $1 trillion by 2030.

Those with their COP bingo cards out would not have been disappointed as this year’s event ran the gamut of a typical COP with impassioned speeches from the likes of Al Gore all the way through to oil and gas majors calling fossil fuels “a gift from God.”

While the final agreement has yet to take shape, there have been a lot of positives. Here is a snapshot of some of them:

• Low Carbon Tourism and Coal Abatement Agreement: 25 countries plus the EU agreed not to add any new coal-fired electricity generation to their energy makeup. This agreement included countries like Canada and the UK, but some of the world’s largest emitters, China, India, and the US, did not sign up. There was also an agreement from 50 countries on including tourism, which makes up 8.8% of global emissions, in their nationally determined contributions (NDCs – the country-specific plans to reduce emissions).
• A Turning Point for Carbon Markets: On day one of the COP, there was an agreement to establish carbon credit quality standards. While some of the intricacies of this deal are still to be ironed out, a UN-backed carbon market will bring some much-needed credibility to the voluntary carbon market and deliver funding to developing nations.

As negotiations go into overtime, here are the main agreements still pending:

• Who Pays: Should so-called developing nations like China (which overtook Europe as the second-largest historical emitter of GHG this year), Saudi Arabia, and India pay the same amount as developed nations? The problem is that the definition of developing and developed nations was created in 1992 and needs to be updated. There is also the question of loans or grants and whether to tax emissions-intensive industries like shipping and aviation to help pay for climate damages and adaptation.
• Fossil Fuel Transition: While the EU is pushing for a deal to encourage a phase-out of fossil fuel, OPEC countries are fighting it.

The closer we get to Friday’s deadline, the less confident delegates seem about getting a positive and impactful final deal over the line. Late on Thursday, while writing this, a whole bunch of numbers were being tossed about. Ranging from a $1.3 trillion request from developing nations to an EU proposal of $300 billion, which was met with – “Is that a joke?” The impasse really became evident when a draft materialized, with an ‘X’ where actual figures should have been.

The stakes are high. Without proper funding, governments in emerging economies will struggle to develop low-carbon technologies and adapt to a changing climate. However, even if this COP fails to reach an agreement, the private sector, NGOs, and climate advocates will continue to work toward the inevitable transition to a low-carbon economy.

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