Policy paper

COP26 World Leaders Summit – Statement on the Breakthrough Agenda

Updated 14 January 2022

This was published under the 2019 to 2022 Johnson Conservative government

© Crown copyright 2022

This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.

Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.

This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cop26-world-leaders-summit-statement-on-the-breakthrough-agenda-2-november-2021/7a0907c9-afa2-4c9f-aef3-b2be0fc9eaa5

Statement on the Breakthrough Agenda

Today, at COP26 in Glasgow, the countries listed below launched the Breakthrough Agenda – a commitment to work together internationally this decade to accelerate the development and deployment of the clean technologies and sustainable solutions needed to meet our Paris Agreement goals, ensuring they are affordable and accessible for all.

The 2020s must be a decade of delivery across all major emitting sectors. While we acknowledge our different national circumstances, we will endeavour to work together in each sector, including through public-private collaboration and by mobilising finance at scale, to make the global transition to a clean economy faster, lower cost and easier for all, while making solutions to adaptation more affordable and inclusive.

This is essential to meeting the Paris Agreement goals, including holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5°C, noting that the science shows further acceleration of efforts is needed if we are to collectively keep 1.5°C within reach, which will prevent the worst effects of climate change, especially for the most vulnerable countries.

The benefits of this Agenda go beyond tackling climate change alone. Our ambition is to catalyse the growth of markets, jobs and economic development globally for clean technologies and sustainable solutions, support the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, strengthen the climate resilience of our societies and realise multiple cobenefits such as cleaner air, water and better health.

As a first step under this Agenda, we are launching the Glasgow Breakthroughs – global goals that aim to make clean technologies and sustainable solutions the most affordable, accessible and attractive option in each emitting sector globally before 2030.

We intend to discuss this Agenda in the future at relevant leader level events and consider how it could further support global efforts to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. To support this intention, starting in 2022, we invite responsible Ministers to review global progress, including at Mission Innovation and Clean Energy Ministerial meetings, informed by an annual report, led by the International Energy Agency, working in collaboration with IRENA, the United Nations High Level Climate Action Champions, and other institutions, bodies and industry leaders as appropriate.

We invite all other States to join the Breakthrough Agenda.

Endorsed by:

  1. Australia
  2. Azerbaijan
  3. Belgium
  4. Canada
  5. Cabo Verde
  6. Chile
  7. China
  8. Denmark
  9. Egypt
  10. European Union
  11. Finland
  12. France
  13. Germany
  14. Guinea Bissau
  15. Holy See
  16. India
  17. Ireland
  18. Israel
  19. Italy
  20. Japan
  21. Kenya
  22. Latvia
  23. Lithuania
  24. Luxembourg
  25. North Macedonia
  26. Norway
  27. Malta
  28. Mauritania
  29. Morocco
  30. Namibia
  31. Netherlands
  32. New Zealand
  33. Nigeria
  34. Panama
  35. Portugal
  36. Republic of Korea
  37. Senegal
  38. Serbia
  39. Slovakia
  40. Spain
  41. Sweden
  42. Turkey
  43. United Arab Emirates
  44. United Kingdom
  45. United States of America

The Glasgow Breakthroughs

Power

Breakthrough: Clean power is the most affordable and reliable option for all countries to meet their power needs efficiently by 2030.

Global metrics: We invite the IEA, working in collaboration with IRENA and the United Nations High Level Climate Action Champions, and other institutions, bodies and industry leaders, to lead an assessment of global progress towards this breakthrough, including reporting on evidence of the following:

  1. Annual capacity additions of clean energy (on grid and distributed), including as a share of global total electricity generation.
  2. Investments in both the research, development and demonstration and deployment of clean power, enabling technology, and grids, including as a share of total power investment globally.
  3. Evidence that power systems can integrate very high levels of variable renewable energy (including up to 100%) in different geographies and climates whilst maintaining a cost-efficient, secure and resilient system.
  4. Rate of annual energy efficiency improvement (including for key products sold globally).
  5. Relative cost, affordability and accessibility of clean power technologies (compared to alternatives).

Leading initiatives for international collaboration: As well as working through relevant international institutions and region-specific initiatives, we note the importance of the following global initiatives to making progress towards and coordinating activities towards this breakthrough goal:

  • Breakthrough Energy Catalyst
  • C40 Cities’ Clean Energy Network
  • Clean Energy Ministerial’s Super-Efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD) initiative
  • Climate Group’s EP100
  • RE100, led by Climate Group in partnership with CDP
  • Efficiency for Access Coalition
  • Energy Transition Council
  • First Movers Coalition
  • Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy [footnote 1]
  • Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet
  • Global Power System Transformation Consortium
  • Green Grids initiative - One Sun, One World, One Grid
  • International Smart Grid Action Network
  • Mission Innovation Green Powered Future Mission
  • Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) [footnote 2]

We invite all relevant international initiatives to align with this breakthrough.

Participants:

  1. Australia
  2. Azerbaijan
  3. Belgium
  4. Canada
  5. Chile
  6. Denmark
  7. Egypt
  8. European Union
  9. Finland
  10. France
  11. Germany
  12. Guinea Bissau
  13. Holy See
  14. India
  15. Ireland
  16. Israel
  17. Italy
  18. Japan
  19. Kenya
  20. Lithuania
  21. North Macedonia
  22. Norway
  23. Morocco
  24. Namibia
  25. Netherlands
  26. New Zealand
  27. Nigeria
  28. Panama
  29. Portugal
  30. Republic of Korea
  31. Serbia
  32. Slovakia
  33. Spain
  34. Sweden
  35. United Kingdom
  36. United States of America

Road Transport

Breakthrough: Zero emission vehicles are the new normal and accessible, affordable, and sustainable in all regions by 2030.

Global metrics: We invite the IEA, working in collaboration with IRENA and the United Nations High Level Climate Action Champions, and other institutions, bodies and industry leaders, to lead an assessment of global progress towards this breakthrough, including reporting on evidence of the following:

  1. Share of new light- and heavy-duty vehicle sales that are zero emission.
  2. Amount of available recharging infrastructure for zero emission vehicles.
  3. Investments in both the research, development and demonstration and the deployment of zero emission vehicles and of key components such as batteries.
  4. Relative cost, affordability and accessibility of zero emission vehicles and of key components such as batteries (compared to alternatives).

Leading initiatives for international collaboration: As well as working through relevant international institutions and region-specific initiatives, we note the importance of the following global initiatives to making progress towards and coordinating activities towards this breakthrough goal:

  • Clean Energy Ministerial’s Electric Vehicle Initiative
  • Climate Group’s EV100 and Route Zero
  • First Movers Coalition
  • Transport Decarbonisation Alliance
  • Zero Emission Vehicle Transition Council

We invite all relevant international initiatives to align with this breakthrough.

Participants:

  1. Australia
  2. Azerbaijan
  3. Belgium
  4. Canada
  5. Denmark
  6. Egypt
  7. European Union
  8. Finland
  9. France
  10. Germany
  11. Guinea Bissau
  12. Holy See
  13. India
  14. Ireland
  15. Israel
  16. Japan
  17. Latvia
  18. Lithuania
  19. Luxembourg
  20. Norway
  21. Malta
  22. Morocco
  23. Namibia
  24. Netherlands
  25. New Zealand
  26. Panama
  27. Portugal
  28. Republic of Korea
  29. Serbia
  30. Sweden
  31. Turkey
  32. United Kingdom
  33. United States of America

Steel

Breakthrough: Near-zero emission steel is the preferred choice in global markets, with efficient use and near-zero emission steel production established and growing in every region by 2030.

Global metrics: We invite the IEA, working in collaboration with IRENA and the United Nations High Level Climate Action Champions, and other institutions, bodies and industry leaders, to lead an assessment of global progress towards this breakthrough, including reporting on evidence of the following:

  1. Number of near-zero emission steel plants in operation and under development, and total global near-zero emission steel production capacity.
  2. Share of global steel production covered by near zero emission steel standards.
  3. Investments in both the research, development and demonstration and deployment of near zero emissions steel technologies.
  4. Relative cost, affordability and accessibility of near-zero emission steel and relevant technologies (compared to alternatives).

Leading initiatives for international collaboration: As well as working through relevant international institutions and region-specific initiatives, we note the importance of the following global initiatives to making progress towards and coordinating activities towards this breakthrough goal:

  • Clean Energy Ministerial’s Industrial Deep Decarbonisation Initiative
  • Climate Group’s SteelZero
  • First Movers Coalition
  • Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT)
  • Mission Innovation Industry Mission
  • Mission Possible Partnership’s Net-Zero Steel Initiative
  • Responsible Steel

We invite all relevant international initiatives to align with this breakthrough.

Participants:

  1. Australia
  2. Azerbaijan
  3. Belgium
  4. Canada
  5. Denmark
  6. Egypt
  7. European Union
  8. Finland
  9. France
  10. Germany
  11. Guinea Bissau
  12. Holy See
  13. India
  14. Ireland
  15. Israel
  16. Japan
  17. Lithuania
  18. Luxembourg
  19. Norway
  20. Morocco
  21. Namibia
  22. New Zealand
  23. Portugal
  24. Republic of Korea
  25. Slovakia
  26. Spain
  27. Sweden
  28. Turkey
  29. United Kingdom
  30. United States of America

Hydrogen

Breakthrough: Affordable renewable and low carbon hydrogen is globally available by 2030.

Global Metrics: We invite the IEA, working in collaboration with IRENA and the United Nations High Level Climate Action Champions, and other institutions, bodies and industry leaders, to lead an assessment of global progress towards this breakthrough, including reporting on evidence of the following:

  1. Production cost, and cost at point of supply, of renewable and low carbon hydrogen (and affordability and accessibility compared to alternatives).
  2. Volume of renewable and low carbon hydrogen production globally.
  3. Greenhouse gas abatement, across the full value chain, from the production and take-up of renewable and low carbon hydrogen.
  4. Investments in the research, development and demonstration and deployment, of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen technologies.

Leading initiatives for international collaboration: As well as working through relevant. international institutions and region-specific initiatives, we note the importance of the following global initiatives to making progress towards and coordinating activities towards this breakthrough goal:

  • Breakthrough Energy Catalyst
  • Clean Energy Ministerial’s Hydrogen initiative
  • First Movers Coalition
  • Green Hydrogen Catapult
  • Hydrogen Council
  • Hydrogen Energy Ministerial
  • International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy
  • Mission Innovation Clean Hydrogen Mission

We invite all relevant international initiatives to align with this breakthrough.

Participants:

  1. Australia
  2. Azerbaijan
  3. Belgium
  4. Canada
  5. Chile
  6. China
  7. Denmark
  8. Egypt
  9. European Union
  10. Finland
  11. France
  12. Germany
  13. Guinea Bissau
  14. Holy See
  15. India
  16. Ireland
  17. Israel
  18. Italy
  19. Japan
  20. Kenya
  21. Lithuania
  22. Norway
  23. Mauritania
  24. Morocco
  25. Namibia
  26. Netherlands
  27. New Zealand
  28. Panama
  29. Portugal
  30. Republic of Korea
  31. Serbia
  32. Slovakia
  33. Spain
  34. Sweden
  35. United Kingdom
  36. United States of America

  1. Proposed - subject to agreement of countries ↩

  2. Proposed - subject to agreement of countries ↩

Back to top