Fossil Fuel Lobbyists Maintain Significant Presence at COP30 in Belém
At the COP30 climate summit in Belém, 1,602 fossil fuel lobbyists were granted access, according to an analysis by the KBPO. This number represents approximately one in every 25 participants and shows a 12% rise from COP29 in Baku, though it is smaller in absolute terms than the figures at COP28 (2,456) and COP29 (1,773). The share of fossil fuel lobbyists is higher relative to the total attendance at Belém, which was less well attended overall.
Fossil fuel lobbyists outnumber every country's delegation except the host nation, Brazil, which has 3,805 delegates and the largest presence overall. Over the past five years, around 7,000 fossil fuel lobbyists have gained access to UN climate summits.
A breakdown by KBPO highlights that 148 lobbyists are affiliated with the International Chamber of Commerce, 60 with the International Emissions Trading Association—including representatives from ExxonMobil, BP, and TotalEnergies—and 41 belong to the Brazilian National Confederation of Industry. The ICC has stated that only three of their 148 affiliates are fossil fuel firms.
Transparency International noted that more than half of the country delegation members at COP30 withheld or obscured their affiliations. New disclosure rules for the summit exclude official government delegations and overflow lists, complicating transparency efforts.
Examples of industry presence include France's delegation, which comprises 22 industry delegates including the CEO of TotalEnergies, and Norway's delegation with six executives from Equinor. The impact of fossil fuel lobbying is stark in countries vulnerable to climate disasters; for instance, the ratio of fossil fuel lobbyists to official delegates is about 50 to 1 in the Philippines, 44 to 1 in Iran, and 40 to 1 in Jamaica, all countries experiencing severe climate events like typhoons and hurricanes.
Adding to the urgency, a July 2023 advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice declared that continued fossil fuel expansion may be internationally wrongful. This opinion bolsters calls to restrict fossil fuel lobbying at UN climate talks to better align with global climate goals.
