Negotiators at the climate summit in Paris hope to reach an agreement on how to tackle global warming on Saturday – a day later than expected, French foreign minister Laurent Fabius said.
Participants at COP21 have been working on a draft text prepared by the French presidency since Wednesday. The question of compensation for countries most affect by climate change remains unresolved.
But Mr Fabius said “things are moving in the right direction”.
A deal signed in Paris would come into being in 2020. The latest draft text says temperature rises must be kept well below 2 degrees above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees.
More than 190 nations gathered in Paris to disciss a possible new global agreement on climate change.
Issues around climate financing and the demarcation between developed and developing countries have presented significant difficulties for the negotiators.
Richer nations want emerging economies to take more responsibility for cutting emissions and providing finance to very poor countries badly affected by climate change.
Richer countries also want a single system of verification of promises for all nations.
“We feel that when parties have committed themselves to a national target that reflects their ambitions and abilities, they must be ready to tell the global community what type of progress is being made,” said Elina Bardram, the EU’s chief negotiator told reporters.
“We need to have accounting standards and principles that are common to all - otherwise you are simply comparing apples with pears.”