[From the Scene] How ‘world’s first oil town’ is wrestling to become ‘green'

BAKU, Azerbaijan -- Driving just a few miles from the venue of this year’s global climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, a transformation is taking place.

Once known as the Black City, from all the soot created in the 19th century from pumping and refining oil, it claims the dubious honor of being the world's oldest oil town.

Having the world’s first-ever mechanically drilled oil well in 1846, the country at one point provided more than half of the world's oil.

Having fueled the Soviet war effort in World War II, the oil in Baku also has a deep connection with Nobel Prizes. Some 12 percent of the prize fund came from the “Dynamite King” Alfred Nobel's shares in the Nobel Brothers' Petroleum Company in Baku, which established a major industry for oil wells in 1859.

But now the Black City is looking to go green.

Petrostate to host COP29

With refineries standing out clearly against the night-time skyline in the city, the city still pumps oil, which makes up 90 percent of the country’s exports.

But a newer addition to the town is a headquarters for COP29 in November, inviting more than 198 countries that signed the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

It may come off as an irony for the classic petrostate to host climate talks. However, Azerbaijan says it can be a “bridge between disparate regions” and is “making substantial progress on renewables,” according to Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev at the Shusha Global Media Forum held in July.

The president has declared Azerbaijan “in the active phase of green transition,” with targets to generate 30 percent of electricity from renewable sources by 2030, up from about 7 percent today.

A greener future

Changes are happening around the country.

A short drive out of the city is the vast Garadagh solar plant, developed by the UAE company Masdar, which opened last year. Being the country’s first industrial-scale solar project, it aims to power some 110,000 homes and cut emissions by 200,000 tons of CO2 a year.

Under the relentless blaze of the sun, gleaming solar panels stretch out a vast expanse of 550 hectares, their polished surfaces reflecting the sky above, with towering oil rigs of the Caspian Sea visible in the hazy distance.

The facility has a capacity of 230 megawatts, which generates more than 500 million kilowatt-hours per year.

Masdar country manager for Azerbaijan Murad Sadikhov knows the transition from fossil fuels to low carbon better than most.

“Before, I worked for oil and gas,” he said. “They said that, you know, you came from the dark side.”

As how the country was a global pioneer in oil production, the government now wants to be a pioneer in green energy, emphasized Sadikhov.

“If the world is changing, transforming the energy from fossil fuels to green energy, Azerbaijan should also be one of the leaders for this global trend,” he said.

The efforts were visible, he added.

“With the measures that the government took to clean the country, it really brought good results. When they started to change the public transportation to CNG (Compressed Natural Gas), the air in Baku city became much cleaner than it was before.”

New climate fund

Outlining a “Roadmap to Mission 1.5 C,” a global target to limit earth temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels under the Paris Agreement, Baku will have to succeed in tackling one of the biggest fights: How to allocate trillions of dollars from developed nations to emerging markets.

Agreeing on the size of a global funding bill to aid developing countries fight climate change or even how to split the bill is an issue.

Baku announced plans to launch a new climate fund that aims to mobilize $1 billion to support developing countries’ new national climate targets.

As COP29 president-designate, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev, faces the task of figuring out how to close the gap between what the developed nations are willing to offer and what the developing nations need from the finance.

“It is the most difficult question I have,” he concedes -- especially given that Azerbaijan is heavily dependent on a fossil fuel economy.

“It is a process of negotiations and it is very difficult now to say what will be decided in November in Baku," he said.

“But all of the countries understand these new goals and need to be more ambitious and more pragmatic.”

So far the wealthy developed world has barely met its longstanding commitment of providing the funds needed. Azerbaijan did not disclose how much it would contribute but said more details would be released in the coming months.

South Korea and COP29

“South Korea is a very, very special case as it is developed but not a developed country in legal terms,” Deputy Minister of Energy Elnur Soltanov, COP29's chief executive officer, told The Korea Herald.

Despite its economic growth, South Korea remains classified as an “Emerging Market” by MSCI despite the nation’s efforts to reform its capital markets.

"This is one of the biggest debates right now happening. Certain parties may be legally speaking, not developed but are de facto developed countries. Agreements are clear that those countries should also voluntarily contribute to the process," he added.

Countries such as China or South Korea are some of the main countries that pollute emissions but could come under different terms compared to other developed countries when signing up an agreement to tackle climate change due to legal issues.

Due to a change of government in South Korea, it has seen a shift in climate policies away from the government’s previous climate target based on renewables, which President Yoon Suk Yeol has called “too expensive."

South Korea’s climate change mitigation and energy sector planning still lacks the necessary speed and stringency it needs to get onto a pathway compatible with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5 C temperature limit.

"We really appreciate the responsible manner that is bringing its capabilities to bear both financial, technological, and building capabilities to solve the problem. This is the philosophy: do whatever you can so that we can solve the problem. Because at the end of the day, really, that's what matters," urged the COP29 CEO.

Raising public awareness

Azerbaijan is also investing heavily in raising public awareness about environmentally friendly practices and training the next generation of sustainability professionals. Most of the universities have special programs for renewable energy while the country grapples to grow climate experts.

However, talking to the young people on the street, the public was not as much excited as the COP29 facilitating the global event.

"I think it is good for an oil country to hold such a forum, as the country has not been devoted to combating climate change," said a 27-year-old banker who has lived his entire life in Baku.

"However, despite the fact that more than 70 percent of the population of Azerbaijan have a high education, many people have no idea about the COP29 event and still continue to pollute the city."

A 26-year-old computer science major working at a big tech firm in the country also added that more could be done.

"I am glad that the country is moving toward being green. The transition itself is great. However, I think the country can do better with all the resources but seems like not trying as best as they can but rather focusing on superficial or things that look good on the outside," he told The Korea Herald.

The challenge at hand is both clear and urgent. In 2015, countries around the globe committed in Paris to limiting temperature increases to 1.5 Celsius degrees above pre-industrial levels. Scientists warn that surpassing this threshold would significantly heighten risks for the planet.

The world has again witnessed record temperatures this year, while seeing unprecedented and bizarre weather conditions. Experts attribute this alarming trend to man-made climate change, which is also fueling extreme weather events, from devastating floods to prolonged droughts.

Hoping to make a change to the hazardous changes in the environment, some 50,000 attendees are expected to gather at COP29, which takes place at Baku Stadium from Nov. 11-22.

Korea Herald correspondent