COP30: Fossil Fuel Lobbyists Outnumber Nations at the World’s Climate Summit

New analysis shows that more than 1,600 fossil fuel lobbyists were accredited to attend COP30, an extraordinary number that surpasses the delegations of every country except Brazil, the event’s host. According to the coalition Kick Big Polluters Out (KBPO), one in every 25 COP participants represents fossil fuel interests, raising serious questions about the credibility and integrity of the climate talks.

Although the absolute number of lobbyists is slightly lower than at some previous COPs, their proportion within this year’s smaller summit is the highest yet. KBPO’s findings suggest that over the past five years, more than 7,000 lobbyists connected to oil, gas and coal have secured access to UN climate negotiations, a period marked by surging extreme weather impacts, disinformation campaigns, and record fossil fuel profits.

“This is corporate capture, not climate governance,” said Lien Vandamme of the Centre for International Environmental Law.

The Most Vulnerable Countries Are Outnumbered

As the summit opened, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva reiterated his call to counter misinformation, declaring this year’s gathering the “COP of truth.” Yet the numbers reveal a stark imbalance. KBPO found that fossil fuel–affiliated lobbyists received almost 60% more passes than the 10 most climate-vulnerable nations combined.

This disparity becomes even more striking when viewed through real-world impacts. In the Philippines hit by 21 significant storms in a single year industry lobbyists outnumber the country’s delegation by nearly 50 to 1. In Iran, where severe drought threatens to force a mass evacuation of Tehran, the ratio is 44 to 1. Jamaica, facing a multibillion-dollar recovery after Hurricane Melissa, sees lobbyists outnumbering its representation 40 to 1.

International Law, Lobbying Power, and Calls for Reform

The findings follow a landmark ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which stated that ongoing fossil fuel expansion and subsidies may constitute an internationally wrongful act. Against this backdrop, UN Special Rapporteur Elisa Morgera urged countries to recognize “the irreconcilable conflict of interest of the fossil fuel industry,” comparing it to the tobacco sector’s long-running interference in public health policy.

Meanwhile, global emissions remain far too high, and recent analyses indicate that 2025 may become one of the hottest years on record. Yet nearly $250bn has been allocated for new oil and gas projects since COP29. Civil society representatives argue this contradiction is playing out not just in budgets, but inside the COP venue itself.

“From the halls of the UNFCCC to our lands and territories, fossil fuel corporations are wrecking our communities and environment,” said Nerisha Baldevu of Friends of the Earth Africa.

How Lobbyists Enter Delegations And Why It’s Hard to Track

The report notes that more than half of all national delegations at COP30 either withheld or obscured their members’ institutional affiliations, making the true scale of industry influence difficult to quantify. Countries including Russia, Mexico, Tanzania and South Africa did not disclose the affiliations of any delegates at all.

Even with new transparency requirements introduced in 2023, loopholes remain. Delegates embedded in government delegations are exempt from disclosure, and many countries have invited industry representatives directly into their official teams.

France included 22 fossil fuel representatives, among them the CEO of TotalEnergies. Norway brought senior executives from its national oil and gas company Equinor. In total, 1,602 fossil fuel lobbyists were identified this year, including individuals linked to the International Chamber of Commerce, the International Emissions Trading Association, ExxonMobil, BP, TotalEnergies and the Brazilian National Confederation of Industry.

A Battle for the Soul of the UN Climate Process

As one young activist, Pim Sullivan-Tailyour, put it: “While local Indigenous peoples struggled to enter the conference, fossil fuel lobbyists walked in freely. My generation deserves Just Transition policies that reflect what people and the planet need, not what polluters’ profits demand”.

Others see a decades-long pattern. Ivonne Yanez of Acción Ecológica argued that for 30 years, oil companies have used climate summits to “clean up their image, do business and find new ways to get away with environmental crimes,” saying they now seek to “extract every last drop of fossil fuels” rather than transition away from them.

A spokesperson for the UNFCCC responded that the organisation is incrementally strengthening transparency rules, acknowledging that “making further concrete improvements is an ongoing journey” and emphasising that national governments ultimately decide who represents them at COP.

The Pressure for Change

This year’s revelations add to mounting pressure on the UN to restrict fossil fuel lobbying at climate talks. Civil society groups and numerous observers argue that without stronger conflict-of-interest protections, the core mission of COP negotiating in good faith to prevent climate catastrophe risks being compromised further.

Whether COP30 marks a turning point remains to be seen. But what is clear is that the debate over who belongs inside the room is now central to the future of global climate governance.