Global: DONG Energy calls for a global climate agreement at COP21

More than 180 nations and an estimated 40,000 advocates from around the world will meet in Paris at COP21 to complete negotiations on a global climate agreement. Climate action is an extraordinarily complex issue, and the national delegations tasked with reaching a global plan face a myriad of difficult political, economic, diplomatic, social and cultural challenges.

The single overarching goal is to make it possible for more countries, companies and communities across the globe to transition from carbon-based energy such as coal, oil and gas, to something that is both renewable and less damaging to the planet’s ecosystems. This is a huge task which requires both political leaders, the industry, regulators and investors to take action.

Henrik Poulsen, CEO of DONG Energy, said: "With a global climate agreement at COP21, I hope that the world's political leaders will join us in making an effort to ensure that in the future, it will simply be too expensive to choose those energy technologies that pollute our environment. If political leaders, the industry, regulators and investors provide a final push, the world will see a major breakthrough within the next decade where green energy becomes cheaper than black energy."

Driving down costs of green energy

DONG Energy is constantly working to reduce the costs related to renewable energy, such as offshore wind power and bioenergy. We have a strategic goal of reducing the costs of offshore wind power by 35-40 per cent by 2020, and we are well on the way to achieving this. The wind turbines are getting bigger and more efficient and we are developing a standard model for an offshore wind farm based on a uniform design with standardised components.

If green energy is to become cheaper than fossil energy, CO2 emissions must be priced at a level that more fairly reflects the damage they inflict on the planet. The industry must ensure a significant downward pressure on the costs of renewable energy, and the political leaders must ensure that the use of the fossil fuels that pollute our environment become more expensive. In DONG Energy, we hope the political leaders will take an important step in the right direction with a global climate agreement at the COP21 in Paris.