The United Nations has seen a surge of over 5,350 fossil fuel lobbyists attending climate summits over the past four years. These industry representatives worked for more than 859 organizations and contributed to a significant increase in oil and gas production last year, accounting for half of all global emissions.
A recent study found that just 90 corporations produced almost two-thirds of the world’s short-term upstream fossil fuel expansion projects. If executed, these projects would cover an area equivalent to seven European countries combined.
Many critics argue that the UN climate process is being “captured” by corporate interests, as lobbyists have greater access to negotiations than most countries. The largest number of known lobbyists were representing state-owned companies from the UAE, Russia, and Azerbaijan.
As the world faces mounting scientific evidence that global temperatures are not limited to 1.5C above preindustrial levels, calls for fossil fuel companies and other big polluters to be banned from climate negotiations have intensified. Critics argue that a lack of transparency and stricter conflict of interest protections has allowed industry influence to prevail.
The UNFCCC has taken steps towards increasing transparency but critics claim it is too little, too late. The upcoming Cop30 summit in Brazil will see the participation of many world’s most profitable fossil fuel corporations, despite mounting public pressure on governments to phase out fossil fuels.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/07/fossil-fuel-lobbyists-cop-un-climate