Oil and gas giant launches its first sustainability report

Vermilion Energy, an international oil and gas producer, has launched its first sustainability report which lays out details of the company's plans to decrease its greenhouse gas emissions, reduce waste and lower the amount of water and energy it uses.


The recently published report by Vermilion is entitled ‘Value Matters’ and it states that the firm devoted $37m to protecting the environment in 2013.

In its report, the firm stated that it aims to reduce its environmental impact by protecting the land against spills and releases, improving energy efficiency, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reducing its water use.

The report highlights that Vermilion has been helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with geothermal energy. The firm has teamed up with French tomato producer Tom d’Aqui on an “eco-greenhouse” project operation in which to grow tomatoes.

According to Vermilion, Tom d’Aqui’s ten-hectare greenhouse uses heat from its produced water source to create an eco-friendly environment in which to grow some 3,000 tonnes of tomatoes on the vine annually, supporting 150 local jobs and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 10,000 tonnes per year.

The firm, which has operations in Canada, Europe and Australia, said it is now researching how it can use geothermal technology at its other locations.

The report also reveals that Vermilion recovers approximately one third of the water used in its fracturing operations at its gas wells in Alberta, Canada. The company claims that it is working to increase recycling and reuse all of the initially recovered fluids from these operations.

Elsewhere, Vermilion stated that it plans to reduce flaring at its southeast Saskatchewan asset (based in Canada) by tying in gas to a new facility.

Speaking about his first sustainability report, Vermilion chief executive Lorenzo Donadeo said: “Our vision for sustainability looks for opportunities to generate economic, environmental and social benefits for the company and our stakeholders.

“Developing this report provided a framework to assess how we approach sustainability in our operations, and to recognise our achievements, detail our challenges, and establish targets for progress.”

Liz Gyekye

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