POLITICO Energy Podcast: COP31 Negotiations Chief Chris Bowen Tells Data Centers to 'Bring Your Own Energy'

On the POLITICO Energy podcast, Australian Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen, who is leading negotiations at the COP31 climate summit in Antalya, said electrification is the talks' next big push and that data centers in Australia must supply their own new, cheapest power. The episode aired as the two-week conference opened on Nov. 9.

Nov 10, 2026 - 16:15

0 0

Australian Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen, who is overseeing the formal negotiations at this year's United Nations climate conference, told the POLITICO Energy podcast that electrification is the "next sort of big unfinished piece of business" for global climate talks and that data centers in Australia will be expected to bring their own new power. The episode, hosted by POLITICO international climate reporter Sara Schonhardt, was published on Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, the day the COP31 summit opened in Antalya, Türkiye, according to the episode's Apple Podcasts listing.

"That means bringing your own energy, and it means bringing your own cheapest form of energy, which is renewable energy," Bowen said of data center developers, in remarks highlighted in a companion POLITICO article by Schonhardt.

An unusual co-presidency

COP31 runs from Nov. 9 to 20, Türkiye Today reported, with Türkiye's environment minister, Murat Kurum, serving as COP31 President and Bowen as president of negotiations. AFP reported that the arrangement settled a dispute over who would host the conference but raised concerns over how it would work.

In her introduction, Schonhardt said the talks come as the world is set to miss its most urgent climate target, the United States is no longer part of the process, and wars in Ukraine and Iran are driving up global energy prices, according to an episode transcript published by EnergyPod. AFP reported that U.S. President Donald Trump has not sent officials to COP31, though a U.S. congressional delegation is expected in Antalya.

Asked what success would look like, Bowen said landmark outcomes such as Paris, or failures such as Copenhagen, are less likely and that the process is now more iterative. "Every COP is difficult. This COP will be difficult," he said. "The degree of difficulty is very high, but nevertheless, the degree of importance is equally, if not higher."

Bowen described two tracks at the conference: a voluntary action agenda led by Türkiye, where countries sign pledges, and the formal negotiations he chairs, which require consensus among more than 190 countries. He said the two presidencies would draft a proposed outcome rather than wait for one to emerge, but added, "The presidencies, Turkey and Australia, can't dictate the result."

Electrification and the 35% goal

The action agenda includes a goal of raising electricity's share of energy consumption to 35% by 2035. Bowen said on the podcast that "we're not making enough progress on electrification" and that Australia will sign the pledge. He took what he called a pragmatic view of whether that power must be clean, citing electric cars: a vehicle charged from solar panels cuts emissions by 90%, while one charged from a coal-dominated grid still cuts them by 60%. "So 90 beats 60, but 60 beats zero," he said.

That question is already dividing delegations. POLITICO Europe reported on Nov. 10 that only a handful of governments had explicitly backed the 35-by-35 target at a ministerial meeting hosted by Türkiye, with one developed-country diplomat saying only about a dozen nations were prepared to sign. Germany, Norway and Ethiopia were among the backers, while Vanuatu's climate minister, Ralph Regenvanu, said, "We support it, but only if the electrification is from renewable sources." The Australian co-hosts said they were exploring how to include electrification in the final decision text, the outlet reported.

Data centers, gas and batteries

Bowen said electricity demand from artificial intelligence and data centers does not need its own formal agenda item because it will come up across the energy discussions. At home, he said Australia welcomes data center investment if it is in the national interest but will not let it push up other customers' bills. The government is preparing draft legislation, and a rule-making process at the country's Energy Market Commission has begun, he said. "Sometimes a data center is quicker to build than a wind farm," he added.

Bowen said gas can play a role in "peaking and firming," noting that a gas plant has zero emissions when it is off. He said gas use in Australia's energy system has fallen to a 26-year low, that about 600,000 home batteries have been installed over the past 18 months, and that Australia is the third-largest market for utility-scale batteries after China and the United States.

Asked about Australia's continued coal and gas exports, Bowen pointed to the government's target of 82% renewable electricity by 2030 and said Australia wants to remain a reliable trading partner while helping countries such as South Korea with their transitions.

Pacific priorities and the opening plenary

Bowen said only 0.2% of global climate finance for adaptation goes to small island developing states and that he wants COP31 to put more focus on oceans. He said he had seen Pacific ministers called in to meet COP presidents "at two o'clock in the morning after the deal's done," adding, "I'm taking a very different approach." He cited a battery Australia recently opened in Palau that he said will power 25% of that country's energy needs.

Bowen also rejected the premise that many countries are retreating from climate commitments, citing Germany, South Korea and the European Union. He described his talks with China's climate minister as "very warm and constructive."

In his opening plenary speech, Bowen said projected warming had fallen from approaching 4 degrees before the Paris Agreement to closer to 2.6 degrees, and that about $2.2 trillion was invested in clean energy last year, nearly twice the amount flowing to fossil fuels. "The countries that need climate finance the most are getting it the least," he said. He announced that he and Kurum would pursue a presidency-initiated, party-driven decision, saying, "It will not be a lengthy political declaration." UN climate chief Simon Stiell told delegates that progress is "nowhere near far enough or fair enough," UN News reported.