Pressure on KSA to cap carbon emissions and speed the transition to renewable energy will be the big issue that Saudi business and government leaders will be hearing about when COP28 kicks off this coming Thursday in Dubai. You can also expect to hear plenty about funding for climate-related loss and damage and other transition funding for emerging markets at the summit, which runs from 30 November through 12 December.

Setting the agenda: The gathering will focus on fast-tracking the world’s transition to green energy, slashing emissions before 2030, transforming climate finance, and building resilience, the COP28 presidency said in its letter to parties. A big focus of the summer will be the first of the so-called global stocktakes — or “GST” in COP-speak.

What’s a GST? They’re five-year checkpoints that track the progress (or lack thereof) made by the international community since the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Could the loss and damage fund finally see the light? Little progress has been made on the landmark loss and damage fund over the past year after delegates from some 200 nations signed off on the pact at the close of COP27. The fund, championed by Egypt’s climate envoy and COP27 host Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, aims to have wealthy nations pitch into a fund to help vulnerable countries cope with climate change.

Where does it stand? A draft agreement on the fund, reached earlier this month, will be put up for a final vote during COP28, but the AP is warning that it will face challenges getting through.

A new fund to help heavy industry go green? The Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) — a financing scheme under which Western donors help fund developing nation’s transition to green energy — should be replicated for heavy industries and hard-to-abate sectors such as steel, aluminum, cement and fertilizers, Mohieldin told Reuters.

FAST FACT- Emerging markets need some USD 387 bn a year through 2030 to adapt to climate-driven changes, the UN said in a report (pdf).

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