Ethiopia: Guterres Calls On Fossil Fuel Companies to Pay for Climate Damage

What the report says

UN Secretary-General António Guterres used the COP31 climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye, to press governments to make major fossil fuel companies contribute more to climate recovery and damage costs. In remarks reported by the Ethiopian News Agency and distributed by AllAfrica, he said countries should tax windfall profits from major oil firms and direct the money toward climate finance for vulnerable nations.

Guterres argued that the gap between fossil fuel profits and the resources available to countries facing climate losses remains severe. He said nine of the world’s largest oil companies made 95 billion dollars in profit in a single quarter, while the global Loss and Damage Fund has raised only about 600 million dollars. He also renewed his call that “polluters must pay,” framing the issue as one of fairness as well as financing.

The UN chief urged developed countries to help mobilize at least 300 billion dollars a year for developing countries, and said global climate finance should rise to 1.3 trillion dollars annually by 2035. He also called on multilateral development banks to expand lending capacity and on governments to back newer financing tools, along with stronger funding for the Green Climate Fund and the Loss and Damage Fund.

The appeal comes as climate-vulnerable countries continue to seek more predictable support for adaptation, recovery and damage caused by worsening climate impacts. More broadly, his comments reflect ongoing UN efforts to push richer countries and major financial institutions to close the climate finance gap.