1. National 2035 climate targets and plans
The national climate plans will provide context and demonstrate how economies will transition over the next 10 years. So far, 101 countries have submitted 2035 targets, as reported by Climate Action Tracker (CAT). According to CAT UK, Brazil, Norway stand out as ambitious, Australia in line with net-zero while Japan seem to be lagging. The EU and its members will also submit their NDCs, and the preliminary target appears to be in line with net zero. It will be interesting to see how geopolitical turbulence and the US exit from climate cooperation will affect the negotiations.
When all Nordic NDCs are submitted, they will set out the decarbonisation trajectories for our home markets and sectors where our customers operate. For the private sector, NDCs’ real value lies in how clearly they translate into sectoral pathways, stable policies and commercial opportunities, so-called ”investable NDCs”. Without this, private capital will be harder to mobilise at scale, as UN has highlighted.
2. Climate finance gap and how it is addressed
At COP29, governments agreed to set a New Collective Quantified Goal on climate finance of at least USD 300 billion per year by 2035, tripling the previously agreed target. They also agreed to secure efforts of all public and private entities to scale up finance to developing countries to USD 1.3 trillion per year by 2035.
During COP29, developed nations committed to providing USD 300 billion per year, falling short of the recommended USD 1.3 trillion. A key issue at COP30 will be what steps will be taken to close the gap. Scarce public funds must be used to attract private capital at scale for climate mitigation and adaptation in developing countries.
As part of our journey to become a net-zero bank, we work with our customers to support them in financing their transition and decarbonisation plans. Since 2022, we have facilitated more than EUR 200 billion in sustainable finance. A supportive policy environment focusing on enabling private capital to flow towards reducing emissions and increasing resilience will be critical to further support the transition, and we will be keen to see progress in this area also under the UN negotiations.
3. Climate adaptation and resilience
In 2024, the world experienced unprecedented climate impacts, including the first year to exceed the 1.5 °C warming threshold above pre-industrial levels and the warmest year on record. With the 1.5°C threshold temporarily breached and climate impacts growing with ever more severe around the world, climate adaptation and finance are becoming a hot topic for countries and companies alike.
Climate adaptation is set to be a prominent theme in the COP30 discussions, featuring debates on global indicators. It will also play a significant role in the action agenda. Negotiators will address how to finance economic resilience, building on the Global Goal on Adaptation adopted at COP28 and the implementation framework agreed to in 2025.
At Nordea, we will monitor the outcome closely. Identifying and quantifying physical climate risks and helping our customers and societies with adaptation is part of our product and services.