The president of the next UN climate summit, COP28, has called for a tripling of renewable energy generation by 2030 while claiming there is a need for oil and gas from the “least carbon intensive producers”, the Financial Times reports. Sultan al-Jaber, chief executive of state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, was controversially appointed to the role of president by host nation United Arab Emirates earlier this month, the FT says. Politico reports that in a speech on Saturday – his first address since becoming COP28 president designate – al-Jaber said the world is “way off track” to hit climate goals. Speaking at an Atlantic Council event in Abu Dhabi, he said: “The world is playing catch-up when it comes to the key Paris goal of holding global temperatures down to 1.5C…The hard reality is that, in order to achieve this goal, global emissions must fall 43% by 2030.” Reuters adds that al-Jaber promised to make COP28 “practical” and to bring in developed and developing countries to “leave no one behind”.

The New York Times also reports on al-Jaber’s appointment, saying: “A decision by the UAE to select the head of its national oil company, one of the world’s largest, to oversee UN climate talks in Dubai this year has drawn ire from environmental groups across the world. But while the appointment of al-Jaber to lead COP28 may seem like a contradiction, the move reflects the complex balancing act the UAE is trying to pull off as the oil exporter prepares for a renewable future.” The article adds that US climate envoy John Kerry “welcomed” the appointment of al-Jaber, “[citing] his experience as a diplomat and business leader”.

To achieve net zero by 2045, German chancellor Olaf Scholz says the country needs to increase electricity generation by one-third by 2030 and then double that in the following decade using renewables instead of fossil fuels: “The goal needs to be to set up [with] three to four large wind turbines [built] in Germany every day”, he told Berlin-based Tageszeitung newspaper over the weekend, according to Bloomberg. Scholz also tells the newspaper: “That means we have to generate around 80% of our electricity from renewable sources by 2030.” The interview continues with a question to Scholz about plans to shut down the nuclear power plants that had to be closed in 2022 in Germany but were extended to run until April 2023. He replies that they would “definitely” be shut down this spring. Der Spiegel also reports on Scholz’s interview, noting his comments about car use: “I don’t believe in reducing driving by the state. The citizens have to decide for themselves how they want to get around…I’m not a fan of the renunciation narrative.” In the interview, Scholz also comments on the ongoing protests against the eviction of the “brown coal village” of Lützerath in North Rhine-Westphalia, adds Der Spiegel. T-online also carries a Scholz quote: “I used to demonstrate more often. However, for me, there is a limit that runs exactly where protest becomes violent.”

Meanwhile, Die Zeit reports that a second German terminal for liquefied “natural” gas (LNG) has started operations in Lubmin on the Baltic coast. The outlet notes that LNG imports are expected to help replace gas supplies, which Russia has largely halted since attacking Ukraine. The outlet also quotes Scholz saying that “the gas supply is not affected” in Germany. Another terminal will follow shortly in Brunsbüttel in Schleswig-Holstein, adds Die Zeit. In the abovementioned interview with TAZ, Scholz was asked about the “betrayal of the climate goals” by building LNG terminals, to which he replied: “We are making sure that the LNG terminals can also be used for hydrogen in the future.” In addition, Scholz is now campaigning for an energy partnership with Iraq to export gas and oil to Germany, reports ZDF.

Elsewhere in German news, Der Spiegel carries an interview with economy and climate protection minister Robert Habeck, in which he says that, “in the 2030s, we [Germany] will perhaps have replaced a third of our natural gas consumption with climate-friendly hydrogen”. He also reveals a target for expanding offshore wind from 22 to 30 gigawatts (GW) and two prospective laws for regulating energy efficiency and for enabling the transition to heating systems that run on renewables.

Finally, Manager Magazin reports thatKlaus Müller, the president of the German Federal Network Agency, has warned of a possible “overload” of Germany’s power grid due to the increasing number of private electric car charging stations and electricity-powered heat pumps. This is why the power supply for users of heat pumps and charging stations could be rationed at times, reports Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), adding that the new regulation is scheduled to come into force on 1 January, 2024.

Several publications report on Greta Thunberg’s involvement in protests against the expansion of a coal mine in the German village of Lützerath. Politico reports that Thunberg was physically removed by police after refusing a request to leave the area on Sunday. It reports: “Climate activists have been squatting in the village in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia for more than two years to protest its demolition to accommodate an extension of the Garzweiler coal mine. Thunberg joined them on Saturday, telling a large rally in the fields outside Lützerath that the German government’s compromise deal with the owner of the coal mine was ‘shameful’.” Thunberg also said that Germany was “embarrassing itself” by removing climate protesters from the site, Reuters reports. A second Reuters story reports that 6,000 climate protesters marched in the mud to protest the coal mine expansion, according to a police estimate.

The Times, reporting from the ground, estimates that there were 35,000 protesters present for Thunberg’s address. The New York Times reports that, over the past few days, more than 1,000 police officers have been present to remove climate protesters from the site of the mine expansion. Le Monde adds that climate protesters have accused police of “pure violence”. Politico reports on how the expansion could reflect badly on Germany’s Green party, which currently holds 118 of the 736 seats in national parliament. It says: “The political party responsible for the pepper spray, the bulldozers and a coal deal with one of Germany’s biggest energy companies was the Greens. And every protester here on Saturday knew it.”

The European Union has designed plans to force companies to back up their claims about reducing their environmental impact with evidence, “in a bid to fight greenwashing and misleading advertisements”, Reuters reports. The draft legal proposal by the European Commission, seen by Reuters, aims to target companies promoting their products as “climate neutral” or “containing recycled materials” if such claims are not backed with evidence, the publication says. It adds: “EU countries would have to ensure environmental claims are proven against a science-based methodology, such as a ‘product environmental footprint’ framework that tracks environmental impacts across 16 categories including the air and climate change.”

Elsewhere, Reuters reports the European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen on Friday said that the EU needs new “financing tools” to help its clean technologies compete with US rivals set to benefit from the country’s Inflation Reduction Act.

Raising the minimum standard of energy efficiency to a C rating in privately rented UK homes would save those households around £570 a year, according to a new report covered by the Guardian. The report by thinktank E3G finds this would amount to annual savings of £1.75bn across the country. The Guardian adds: “The government has been accused of dragging its feet on proposals that would require landlords to improve properties to at least a C rating under the energy performance certificate (EPC) scheme.”

Elsewhere, in other UK news, the Guardian reports that campaigners have called for the National Grid to be taken fully into public ownership after a report revealed that it paid investors £9bn in just five years.

The Times reports that ministers will today announce developments to the Public Order Bill which would allow police to “shut down protests before they cause widespread disruption”, which is likely to affect climate groups such as Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil.

The Daily Telegraph reports on estimates from the trade association Energy and Utilities Alliance (EUA) finding that the UK government has underestimated how many heat pump installers will be needed to retrofit UK homes in the push for net-zero.

And the Sun reports – and editorialises – that the Labour Party would, if elected, continue to back the fuel duty freeze, which Carbon Brief analysis shows has increased UK emissions by around 5% since 2010.

US president Joe Biden has approved an emergency declaration for the US state of California, after fierce storms killed at least 19 people and drove floods, power outages, mudslides, evacuations and road closures. Biden ordered federal aid to supplement state, tribal and local recovery efforts in storm-affected areas, according to Reuters. Axios adds that California is likely to face two more powerful “atmospheric river storms” from Saturday to Tuesday.

In an analysis piece, i newspaper policy editor Jane Merrick argues that the recently published review of the UK’s net-zero target by Conservative MP Chris Skidmore provides “real optimism for the future”. She says: “Skidmore makes a strong economic case for net-zero, arguing that it will bring investment for UK firms, describing the transition ‘the industrial revolution of our time’ and the ‘economic opportunity of the 21st century’…[UK prime minister Rishi] Sunak undoubtedly gets the economic benefits that a transition to a low-carbon economy can bring, the question is whether he is politically strong – and brave – enough to make the case before the next election.”

Elsewhere, an article in Daily Telegraph claims that the cost of reaching net-zero will be “at least double” what is laid out in the review. In addition, an editorial in the Sun describes the review as a “mix of fantasy and denial”. It boldly adds: “It blends extreme wishful thinking with a casual disregard for the ruinous cost to households and the political catastrophe facing anyone trying to impose it too fast on a nation which is not ready.” It comes as TV presenter James Whale tries to hit back against claims he is a “climate denier” in a column in the Daily Express, which contains multiple inaccuracies about climate science.

And, in the Daily Telegraph, former CEO of fossil fuel giant BP Tony Hayward warns that “Britain will pay for the price of demonising fossil fuels”. He says: “Where we could all take a lead would be to stop, or at least scale back, the demonisation of the fossil fuel industry by activists, politicians and the media so that it can invest more as we navigate a very difficult transition – but that is probably too much to hope for.”

Many publications continue to cover right-wing outrage towards possible gas stove reform in the US. The Independent carries a news feature which says “the outrage kicked off after the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced that it’s considering taking action on gas stoves over fears they cause indoor pollution linked to asthma in children”. The feature adds that, in response, Ronny Jackson, a Republican congressman from Texas, tweeted: “I’ll NEVER give up my gas stove. If the maniacs in the White House come for my stove, they can pry it from my cold dead hands. COME AND TAKE IT!!” Conservative podcaster and columnist Matt Walsh added: “You will have to pry my gas stove from my cold dead hands.” The Daily Telegraph publishes a breathless column by climate-sceptic opinion writer Juliet Samuel titled: “The Left wants to ban our gas hobs and it doesn’t care about the consequences.” Politico reports on “four things to know about the gas stove frenzy”. In a separate story titled “what the right’s gas stove freakout was really about”, Politico reports: “The Biden administration isn’t proposing to outlaw the fossil-fuel-powered appliances. But they’re at the centre of a growing nationwide debate about city and state gas bans – and the latest Washington culture war.” The New York Times publishes a column by opinion writer Farhan Manjoo titled: “Your gas stove may be killing you. How much should you worry?” The debate is also the subject of the New York Time’s Climate Forward newsletter.

New research on desert bird communities finds that “only a very small proportion” of climate refugia, which the authors define as “warm desert areas with high avian diversity and low predicted physiological impacts”, fall within existing protected areas. The authors combine climate change projections with biophysical models and species distributions to predict the physiological impacts of climate change on desert birds globally under 2C and 4C warming scenarios. They find that climate refugia for desert birds will “persist in varying extents in different desert realms”.

The Yarlung Zangbo River basin in the southern Tibetan Plateau will become wetter in the future – resulting in increased floods and reduced droughts – according to a new study. The authors simulate changes in flood and drought characteristics in the Yarlung Zangbo River basin in historical (1979-2014) and future (2049-84) periods, under moderate (RCP4.5) and high (RCP8.5) emissions scenarios. They find that future changes in flood and drought characteristics could be stronger upstream – where the basin is covered in snow and has a drier climate – than downstream.