Record number of fossil fuel lobbyists get access to Cop28 climate talks

A flare stack at petroleum refinery in Port Arthur, Texas. Despite the record tally at Cop27, the number of lobbyists this year is four times higher this year. Photograph: Rex Wholster/Alamy

At least 2,456 fossil fuel lobbyists have been granted access to the Cop28 climate negotiations, according to an analysis.

The figure calculated by the Kick Big Polluters Out (KBPO) coalition is a record number that raises further questions about the fossil fuel industry’s influence over this year’s UN summit, which is being run by the president of the United Arab Emirates’ national oil company.