Inside Davos 2023, carbon and green energy sat side by side. A closeness that surprised some, and significantly irritated others. Especially those on the sidelines of the annual meeting, which was held as usual in January in the Swiss-Alpine resort of Davos.

Starting with activist Greta Thunberg, who made it clear that she has no faith in the decision makers who attended the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting. In fact, she called the leaders assembled there “the people who are mostly fuelling the destruction of the planet.”

Another of her complaints was about Sultan Ahmed a-Jaber – CEO of United Arab Emirates’ state-owned oil company – being chosen to chair November’s UN climate meeting. Whether your position aligns with Thundberg’s or not, the decision makes it clear that this new closeness between Big Oil and renewables not only marked Davos 2023, but will continue in the future.

Part of the solution 
The main motive for this coziness seems to be money. Those who see this alliance in a positive light point out that the fossil fuel industry has the manpower, size and experience to help scale renewable energy projects.

"Energy companies have to be part of the solution here (...). These are big integrated companies that are really good at doing things, lots of engineers right?” Joseph McMonigle, Secretary General of the International Energy Forum, told Reuters. After a year of high oil prices, these robust players certainly have the investment capacity.

Another argument for ‘bringing Big Oil into the fold’ is that not involving them in the transition to green energy will only result in these companies refusing to adapt to the world’s ecological needs. Ignored, they will only continue to grow – in all the wrong ways.

Commitment issues

But Thunberg isn’t the only critic of this new carbon-green friendship. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was very clear on where he stands in the matter: “Fossil fuel producers and their enablers are still racing to expand production, knowing full well that this business model is inconsistent with human survival,” he said during his special address in Davos 2023.

Significantly, another key takeaway of this year’s WEF meeting was that pledges to cut emissions and make clean energy investments were less than enthusiastic, and concrete, tangible commitments from the main fossil fuel companies to do better are still not a reality.

Faced with undeniable scientific proof of the problems climate change will bring for all of us on Earth – proof that often comes from their own research – fossil fuel companies will soon have to respond to this warm welcome from clean energy with more than promises. After all, they too have to live on this overheated planet we call home.