Countries from around the world reached an agreement to inject at least £240billion annually in humanity’s fight against climate change, aimed at helping poor nations.

After two weeks of chaotic bargaining at Cop29 climate summit, nearly 200 nations agreed on the contentious finance pact in the early hours in a sports stadium in Azerbaijan.

The £240billion will go to developing countries who need the cash to wean themselves off the coal, oil and gas that causes the globe to overheat, adapt to future warming and pay for the damage caused by climate change’s extreme weather.

It’s not near the full amount of £1trillion that developing countries were asking for, but it’s three times a deal of £80billion a year from 2009 that is expiring.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband welcomed the deal reached as ‘a critical eleventh hour deal at the eleventh hour for the climate’.

‘It is not everything we or others wanted but is a step forward for us all,’ Miliband said in a statement released shortly after the deal was announced.

He added the pledge to provide £240billion a year in finance by 2035 to the developing world ‘rightly reflects the importance of going beyond traditional donors like Britain, and the role of countries like China in helping those on the frontline of this crisis’.

‘If this finance is used in the right way, it could cut the equivalent emissions of one billion cars and could protect nearly a billion people from the impacts of climate change,’ he said.

Miliband argued the overall deal ‘sends the signal that the clean energy transition is unstoppable’.

He insisted it ‘will drive forward the clean energy transition which is essential for jobs and growth in Britain and for protecting us all against the worsening climate crisis’.

‘It is the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century and through our championing of it we can help crowd in private investment,’ the UK’s energy secretary added.

Miliband conceded there was ‘much more work to do’ if the world was to ‘prevent climate catastrophe’ but that the UK had ‘pushed for ambition in Baku’.

‘We will keep up the pace, working with other countries before the world meets again in Brazil for COP30,’ he said.

‘Only by doing this can we keep future generations safe and reap the benefits of the clean energy revolution.’

United Nations climate chief Simon Stiell acknowledged the difficult negotiations that led to the agreement, but hailed the outcome as an insurance policy for humanity against global warming.

‘It has been a difficult journey, but we’ve delivered a deal,’ Stiell said. ‘This deal will keep the clean energy boom growing and protect billions of lives.’

‘But like any insurance policy – it only works – if the premiums are paid in full, and on time.’

He went on to admit that the deal was imperfect.

‘No country got everything they wanted, and we leave Baku with a mountain of work still to do. So this is no time for victory laps,’ he said in a statement.

The United States and EU have wanted newly wealthy emerging economies like China – the world’s largest emitter – to chip in.

The final deal ‘encourages’ developing countries to make contributions on a voluntary basis, reflecting no change for China which already provides climate finance on its own terms.