Executive Director meets with senior government leaders in US and Canada – News
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol was in Washington and Ottawa this week for a series of high-level talks with a range of US and Canadian leaders on key energy and climate issues.
In Washington, Dr. Birol met with senior figures including US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Deputy Secretary of Energy Dave Turk. Their meetings addressed key issues such as how the clean energy transition can be a major engine for jobs and economic activity, and the urgency to mobilize more finance for the clean energy transition in emerging and developing countries.
Discussions with Assistant Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan examined the role the United States can play in alleviating the global energy crisis while ensuring long-term energy security and progress in the clean energy transition around the world. In a meeting with Brian Deese, Director of the National Economic Council, and John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation, Dr. Birol the economic and climatic effects of the Inflation Reduction Act both in the United States and beyond.
dr Birol also met bilaterally with Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, chair of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a senior member and past chair of the committee. Among the issues discussed was the renewed determination in the United States to strengthen clean energy supply chains through the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act. The IEA’s latest report, Energy Technology Perspectives, examines the opportunities and challenges of safely, sustainably and resiliently scaling global clean energy technology manufacturing and supply chains.
On Wednesday, Dr. Addressing government ministers in Canada’s Privy Council in Ottawa, Birol gave them an overview of global energy markets and highlighted the role Canada can play in energy security. This was followed by a fireside chat at the University of Ottawa with Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson before a large audience including industry leaders, ambassadors and students. Afterwards, Dr. Birol with Minister for Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault to discuss Canada’s role in accelerating progress towards net-zero global emissions.
The commitments in Washington and Ottawa followed Dr. Birol’s bilateral meeting with the United Nations Secretary-General on Friday in New York.
