After days of talks at the first dedicated gathering on phasing out fossil fuels, ministers, climate advocates and financial experts from more than 50 countries agreed on a set of outcomes and next steps.
Held in Santa Marta, Colombia, and hosted by Colombia and the Netherlands, the meeting laid groundwork for continued cooperation among countries aiming for a clean-energy future and created momentum for further discussions on a politically and economically sensitive issue. Maina Vakafua Talia, Tuvalu’s minister for home affairs, climate change and environment, said delegates were “making history” and stressed the need for multilateralism that addresses governance gaps.
The practical challenge of replacing coal, oil and gas with electrification and faster deployment of renewables is complex and context-specific. Exporting countries face different hurdles from importers. Colombia, for example, relies on coal exports; a rapid wind-down would require alternative income and jobs, legal and contractual navigation to avoid costly lawsuits, and comprehensive social planning. Germany’s Coal Commission — which brought stakeholders together and produced a socially conscious exit plan — is offered as a model; Germany plans to phase out coal-fired power by 2038.
The Santa Marta meeting was presented as a “coalition of the willing” after a roadmap proposal at COP30 was blocked by some countries. Attendees appreciated the less formal, more collaborative tone compared with large UN climate conferences. Former Irish president Mary Robinson said the talks felt more open than COPs, where negotiators often stick strictly to pre-set positions.
Many ideas were exchanged, but finance remains central. France used the forum to outline its timetable: reduce fossil fuels to 40% of final energy consumption by 2030 and 30% by 2035; phase out coal by 2027, oil by 2045 and fossil gas by 2050. NGOs welcomed the clarity but called the targets inadequate given the accelerating climate crisis. Delegates emphasized that developing countries face high borrowing costs and limited capital access, complicating the transition.
Speakers highlighted the scale of existing support for fossil fuels: around $920 billion in subsidies worldwide. Dutch Minister for Climate and Green Growth Stientje van Veldhoven said affordable financing and subsidy reductions are essential for a global transition.
Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro argued the current economic model drives fossil-fuel consumption and links conflicts to energy dependence. EU climate chief Wopke Hoekstra noted that Europe’s fossil-fuel import bill rose by over EUR 22 billion in roughly two months without adding energy capacity, underscoring the economic risks of continued dependence. He said any roadmap should build on UN goals to triple renewable capacity and double energy efficiency by 2030, end new extraction and exploration, and decarbonize transport, aviation and shipping.
Germany was represented by climate diplomat Jochen Flasbarth; domestically, the government remains divided between accelerating renewables and policies that would extend fossil fuel use.
Participants acknowledged a roadmap or treaty will take time. Cristian Retamal, associate researcher at Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, described the talks as constructive but said the coalition’s real impact will become clear only over months and years. Delegates agreed there would be no binding roadmap this year, though some Global South countries pushed for a legally binding treaty.
“We need a fossil fuel treaty that creates the necessary architecture for a just transition,” said Cedric Dzelu, Ghana’s technical director for the minister for climate change and sustainability, arguing past agreements lacked enforceable policies, financing and equitable implementation. Juan Carlos Monterrey, Panama’s special representative for climate change, said a legal instrument must specify what it phases out and how it will be financed, and that such a treaty will take time — but insisted fossil-fuel-based economies are unraveling and must end.
The next meeting is scheduled for Tuvalu, a Pacific island nation vulnerable to sea-level rise. Edited by: Tamsin Walker