Middle Eastern state-run oil companies like Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Saudi Aramco should “set the tone” for climate leadership and helping the fossil fuel industry meet net zero goals at the COP28 talks in Dubai that begin next week, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Thursday.

Responding to a question from Al-Monitor at a press briefing about what role regional state-owned energy companies can play in the transition, IEA chief energy economist Tim Gould said, "Companies like Saudi Aramco or ADNOC, they have a very important leadership role there. And they can really set the tone for what is possible and what's on the agenda [at COP28]," the UN climate talks that take place at Dubai Expo City between Nov. 30 and Dec. 12.

Gould added that it was “a legitimate expectation that these companies should be doing more” to reduce their emissions.

IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in the same briefing earlier that it was a “non-negotiable” element that these companies take steps to reduce their emissions, not only via schemes like carbon capture and storage and carbon offsetting.