What Does the Partnership Between COP31 and the International Energy Agency Entail?

The collaboration between both international organizations was announced in April 2026 by the designated President of the Climate Summit (COP31), Murat Kurum, and the Executive Director of the IEA, Fatih Birol, during the opening session of a high-level dialogue on the energy transition, jointly organized in Paris.

This partnership comes in response to the urgency within the climate debate: overcoming political rhetoric and turning environmental commitment into concrete, actionable measures. According to Dr. Claudia Kemfert, Director of the Department of Energy, Transportation and Environment at the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin), the AIE’s participation can “assess transition pathways, identify investment and infrastructure needs and help turn political commitments into concrete and quantifiable measures that help COP31 to bridge the gap between diplomatic commitments and their practical implementation.”

What are the key pillars of the partnership between the IEA and COP31?

This collaboration combines the summit’s political and negotiating clout with the analytical rigor, specialized knowledge and forecasts of the energy agency. For the President of the climate summit, the agency’s participation will provide access to advice on climate policy and support efforts to cover a wide range of priority issues.

The work will mainly focus on three key pillars of Türkiye’s COP31 Agenda for Action:

• Large-scale electrification: This was a target set by the IEA in 2024, and now, the presidency of COP31 has adopted it as one of its flagship priorities. The goal is to increase the share of electricity in the final energy demand from the current 23 percent to 35 percent by 2035 as a critical pathway for energy security and decarbonization.
• Access to clean cooking: The IEA is partnering with the Turkish presidency on a flagship campaign on clean cooking that aims to strengthen universal access to safe, non-polluting stoves that do not harm people’s health. The aim is to bridge the gap in access to public institutions, such as hospitals and schools, by 2035.
• Zero-waste strategies: Under the Turkish leadership of the Zero Waste initiative, the IEA is providing analysis to identify high-impact opportunities to cut waste generation growth in half by 2035. This includes the use of waste as fuel and improvements in material efficiency.

What role does the IEA normally play in the COPs?

The International Energy Agency is an international organization based in Paris that advises countries on energy sources and the environmental repercussions of energy production. Founded in 1974, the institution initially focused on oil security in the context of the energy crisis.

Currently, the agency is the leading global authority for clean energy and monitoring climate agreements. It has an active presence in global forums such as COP, the G7 and G20, as well as at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

It is led by Fatih Birol, who has been the executive director since 2015. Its mission is to ensure a safe, sustainable and affordable energy future for everyone, promoting the transition toward what it calls the ‘Electricity Era,’ where the energy sector is the main focus of climate action. Its role in this partnership with COP31 includes:

• Identifying opportunities: conducting analysis to indicate where the greatest potential lies to deploy mitigation measures.
• Policy advice: outlining public policy options and analyzing existing frameworks to help governments strengthen their national actions.
• Mapping of investment routes: providing data on investment needs to connect financial flows with tangible results.

The influence of the IEA has significantly increased in recent years due to the energy debate surrounding compliance with the Paris Agreement. “The IEA has evolved from an institution primarily focused on energy security to become one of the most influential global sources of analysis on the energy transition. Its market scenarios and evaluations now play an important role in international climate debates and increasingly underscore the need for renewable energy, electrification, efficiency, grids, as well as storage,” Kemfert noted.

This is a direct consequence of the shift in global investment in the electricity sector, which has risen from 40 percent in 2025 to 60 percent today, according to the Agency’s figures. This context gives the IEA a critical role in tracking these financial flows. Due to its coordinating role, it has also been actively present in the communiqués from the past three climate summits, establishing itself as a reference for setting efficiency and renewable targets.

‘Electrify Now’: the global platform to accelerate the transition

As a catalyst for the electrification goal, the partnership between COP31 and the International Energy Agency recently created the global platform, Electrify Now. It is backed by the IEA, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), multilateral governments and leaders from the private sector. Launched on June 23, this initiative acts as an accelerator for transition projects through three lines of action:

• Visibility and exchange: sharing best practices and ensuring the visibility of successful national and regional projects.
• Mobilizing capital: prioritizing the mobilization of financial flows and investments toward emerging and developing economies.
• Resilient infrastructure: modernizing electric grids, strengthening resilient supply chains and increasing energy storage.

COP31, preparations underway

With COP31 on the horizon, it is worth remembering that the negotiation process is still in the preparation phase. The meetings held so far, including the June sessions in Bonn, have served to lay the groundwork for the summit, although key issues remain unresolved. Although the Turkish presidency has presented an ambitious vision for this year’s edition, several critical aspects remain open and must be defined over the coming months.

• There is no final version of the official agenda: what is currently known are the presidency’s thematic priorities and their ‘Agenda for Action’. However, the agenda for the official technical negotiation is a living document that is still being defined.
• The real negotiations have not started yet: although there are technical discussions, the negotiations where binding commitments are made only occur at the November summit.
• Lack of definitive political documents: we currently have the presidency’s vision and letters from the parties, but they are not legal documents resulting from multilateral consensus. The tangible results and final decisions only emerge after the summit.
• Priorities subject to change: the final structure of the Agenda for Action remains flexible as the principle of consensus requires all nations, with their varying levels of development, to feel represented to ensure legitimacy and long-term commitment.

Therefore, the current period is one of dialogue aimed at rebuilding trust. The real transition from promises to results will only take place when the current consultation process is transformed into a global consensus at the Antalya (Türkiye) event. In Kemfert’s view, COP31 will determine whether the priorities set by the Turkish presidency “will lead to concrete national policies and investable projects.”

For this expert, it will be “the key political test of whether energy security is used to accelerate investment in clean energy or to justify new reliance on fossil fuels.”

Frequently asked questions about the partnership between COP31 and the International Energy Agency

What is the partnership between COP31 and the International Energy Agency (IEA)?

The partnership between COP31 and the International Energy Agency is a collaborative agreement to provide analysis, data and technical advice that help transform climate commitments into public policies, investments and concrete projects with a 2035 outlook.

Why is the International Energy Agency participating in COP31?

The International Energy Agency is participating in COP31 to provide independent analysis on the energy transition, assess the investment and infrastructure needs and help governments design data-based energy policies that facilitate the implementation of the climate agreements.

What are the main objectives of the partnership between COP31 and the IEA?

The partnership focuses on three priorities: accelerating large-scale electrification, expanding access to clean cooking solutions and promoting zero waste strategies. These initiatives aim to advance decarbonization, improve energy security, promote universal access to clean and accessible energy and facilitate the mobilization of investments through 2035.

What is the 'Electrify Now' platform?

'Electrify Now' is an international initiative launched by COP31, the International Energy Agency (IEA) and other partners to accelerate electrification. The platform promotes the exchange of best practices, the mobilization of financing and the development of more resilient electricity infrastructure.

What role does the International Energy Agency play in climate summits?

The International Energy Agency provides technical analysis, energy scenarios and data on investments to support international climate change negotiations. Its reports serve as a reference to assess progress in the energy transition and guide decision-making.

Has the agenda for COP31 been finalized?

No, COP31 is still in the preparation phase. Although the Turkish presidency has presented its priorities and Agenda for Action, the negotiation agenda and final agreements will be defined during the November summit In Antalya, Türkiye.