ICC provides strong business presence at Barcelona climate change meeting

On the road to Copenhagen ICC has taken an active role supporting the UNFCCC process and an agreement in Copenhagen which will enable business to contribute solutions, especially stimulating investment and deployment of existing and advanced technology on the necessary scale to enable a transition towards a low-carbon economy.

“Business needs clarity and stability from a post-2012 agreement for investment and technology development and deployment to deal with climate change,” said Mr Corbier during an event hosted by the regional government of Cataluña and the Climate Group in Barcelona. “Moving forward, we must recall the critical role business will play in the post-Copenhagen implementation phase.”

At it’s official side event during the meeting, Financing: How business invests and frameworks needed, ICC brought together a range of business experts from various sectors who provided concrete examples of the enabling frameworks needed to catalyse private sector investment and achieve deep-long term emissions reductions.

ICC Commission on Environment and Energy Vice Chair Brian Flannery opened the side event stating that public finance must promote and leverage private investment within and outside the UNFCCC. “Accelerated development and deployment of existing and advanced efficient, low greenhouse gas emitting technologies will be essential to meet aspirations and manage risks at affordable costs,” he said.

“Business wants and already invests in a cleaner and more sustainable future,” said Russel Mills, Global Director Energy & Climate Change Policy, Dow Chemicals. ”Now is the time for a new level of cooperation between producers, consumers and governments to develop effective enabling frameworks to stimulate private sector investment.”

Andrei Marcu, Head of Regulatory Affairs, Mercuria Energy Trading, stressed the importance of market mechanisms such as the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). “While the CDM has not been perfect, it has created a price on carbon and helped gain public acceptance for business and the public at large.” Mr Marcu warned, however, that the future will be different, ambitions bigger, and new mechanisms will have to live up to private sector expectations.

“Investors are looking globally for the next major investment opportunity, and fighting climate change will be a key area, but more is needed from governments,” said Abyd Karmali, Managing Director, Global Head of Carbon Markets, Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Kaveh Zeneidi, Climate Change Coordinator, United Nations Environment Programme, summed up the session by stating that there is a need to rise to the challenge of climate change and that it is important for governments to deliver on the public policy options and enabling frameworks for the private sector to invest in a low-carbon economy.

ICC has provided solutions on key areas of business expertise such as finance, technology development and deployment and energy efficiency and will continue to do so in Copenhagen and beyond.