UN Secretary-General Guterres Calls for Renewable Energy at Antalya COP31

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres drew attention to the importance of renewable energy sources at the high-level global accelerator event held in Antalya within the framework of the 31st UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP31), hosted by Turkey.

In his speech at the COP31 Summit in Antalya, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated that renewable energy is almost everywhere the cheapest, fastest, and safest source of electricity. Stating that the climate crisis is accelerating and dependency on fossil fuels creates disadvantages, Guterres expressed that clean energy investments are increasing, but the transition process is not fast or fair enough.

Guterres noted that electricity grids are the heart of the renewable energy transition, but currently projects with a capacity of 3 gigawatts [note: translating literally from source '3 bin gigavat' as 3,000 gigawatts] are stuck in the queue. Conveying that the planning and permit processes for new transmission lines can take up to 15 years, Guterres recorded that more than 80 million kilometers of power lines must be built or modernized by 2040 for the age of electrification.

Stating that they are focusing on Africa and Southeast Asia with the Global Grids Accelerator launched in September, Guterres emphasized that they support the "Mission 300" initiative for the 600 million people living without electricity in Africa, and that the ASEAN grid will ensure energy security in Southeast Asia.