Chile will not submit its nationally determined contribution (NDC) — emissions reduction plan — for 2035 by the February deadline set by the UN climate body the UNFCCC, but in the middle of next year, the country's environment minister Maisa Rojas told Argus at the UN Cop 29 climate summit today.
Rojas said that this is because the country wants to make sure that its updated NDC is "strong".
Cop parties are expected to submit their NDCs in November-February, as part of a cycle that requires countries to "ratchet up" their commitments every five years.
Chile last updated its emission pledge under its NDC at Cop 27, in Egypt, in 2022. The country committed to to carbon neutrality by 2050 and peaking of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2025. Its carbon neutrality goal is legally binding as it is part of its climate law.
Chile is not the only one facing challenges in providing updated 2035 target, with southeast Asian nations also flagging headwinds. Host country Azerbaijan also pointed to the "difficulties of developing ambitious NDCs" earlier this year.
The IEA at the start of this year indicated that ahead of the next round of NDCs, it had received "several requests" from countries asking for help on data, analysis and policy advice, and that the agency would provide some support.
Earlier this week, Chile, alongside Germany, launched a global management platform aimed at providing emerging and developing countries with access to international technical and financial resources to reduce carbon emissions, including assistance to incorporate industrial decarbonisation into the design of NDCs.
Rojas today also announced that some Latin American countries, including Brazil, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Chile will work towards including methane emission reduction in the waste management sector in their new NDCs, in line with the global methane pledge.
Brazil on 13 November announced the country aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 67pc by 2035, compared with 2005 levels.
