CFE’s Net Zero for Nuclear Night at COP28

Carbon-Free Europe (CFE) recently convened global nuclear stakeholders at COP28 for its Nuclear for Net Zero Night, in collaboration with the Atlantic Council and Clean Air Task Force. The event strengthened relationships among some of the world’s foremost nuclear policy experts and stakeholders and offered attendees a closer look at CFE’s 2023 Annual Decarbonisation Perspective.

The evening served as a precursor to the World Nuclear Association’s offsite Net Zero Nuclear Summit, where CFE co-founder Lindsey Walter moderated a panel on unlocking financing barriers and expanding customer bases for nuclear energy. The panel includedPresident of China National Nuclear Power, Zou Zhengyu; COO of Emirates Steel Arkan, Hassan Salim Shashaa; and Idaho National Laboratory Director of Integrated Energy & Storage Systems, Shannon Bragg-Sitton. 

Carbon-Free Europe engaged with an array of clean energy leaders throughout COP28, here’s a closer look at some of those conversations:

• CFE co-founder Lindsey Walter spoke on the IAEA Atoms4Climate Blue Zone Pavilion panel Taking Stock of Nuclear Energy’s Role in Climate Action alongside African Commission on Nuclear Energy (AFCONE) Executive Secretary, Mr. Enobot Agboraw, State Secretary to the Swedish Minister for Climate and the Environment, Daniel Westlén, and Founding Director of Terrapraxis, Kirsty Gogan. She spoke about nuclear energy’s treatment in the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report and first Global Stocktake and the risks of leaving nuclear out of climate planning strategies.
  
  
• Lindsey also participated in a private roundtable at the Global Decarbonization Accelerator Pavilion, titled Women and the Clean Energy Transition and hosted by the Business Council for Sustainable Energy in partnership with the US Department of Commerce and Atlantic Council. Participants discussed driving thought leadership and gender considerations in project development and financing. The event was moderated by Lauren Hughes, Deputy Director of the Atlantic Council’s Nuclear Energy Policy Initiative, with participation from Marisa Lago, Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade.
  
  
• Lindsey attended the Climate Leadership Council’s dinner and roundtable on clean energy trade and opportunities to build a clean transatlantic marketplace. The convening featured opening remarks from Anthony Agotha, Special Envoy for Climate and Environment Diplomacy for the European External Action Service and former member of Frans Timmermans cabinet leading on transatlantic relations.
  
  
• Lindsey spoke on the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation and World Nuclear Association's Net Zero Nuclear Export Financing Green Zone Panel, which was specifically designed to highlight Third Way’s recommendations on export finance. She was joined by Omar Ben Halim from the US International Development Finance Corporation, who emphasized the importance of development finance and export credit agencies in supporting nuclear projects.
  
  
• Lindsey moderated a panel, Building Social License for Nuclear, in the Net Zero Nuclear Blue Zone Pavilion with the President Elect of the American Nuclear Society, Lisa Marshall, and Executive VP of AtkinsRealis Nuclear Canada, Gary Rose. They discussed best practices for community engagement for new nuclear projects.
  
  
• Lindsey moderated a panel, Youth and Sweden’s New Nuclear Roadmap, with the State Secretary to the Swedish Minister for Climate and the Environment, Daniel Westlén, and two youth advocates for nuclear energy. They broke down Sweden’s newly released plans to build two large nuclear reactors by 2035 and 10 others by 2045, and discussed the role of young climate activists in changing Sweden’s historic anti-nuclear stance. It wasn’t that long ago in 1980 when Sweden planned to phase out all nuclear energy, but this new nuclear roadmap is the latest in a series of wins for nuclear power in Sweden.