The CEOs of the 10 firms that currently make up the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) today (16 October) confirmed their support for a strong agreement at Paris, and the need to limit global warming to two degrees.
The OGCI, which collectively provides a fifth of global oil and gas production, also pledged to increase low-carbon efforts in their own operations.
The joint statement issued today said: “Our shared ambition is for a 2°C future. It is a challenge for the whole of society. We are committed to playing our part.
“Over the coming years we will collectively strengthen our actions and investments to contribute to reducing the GHG intensity of the global energy mix. Our companies will collaborate in a number of areas, with the aim of going beyond the sum of our individual efforts.”
BG Group, BP, Eni, Pemex, Reliance Industries, Repsol, Saudi Aramco, Shell, Statoil and Total all signed the statement. American giants Chevron and ExxonMobil are not a part of the OGCI.
The OGCI also today launched its new report – More energy, lower emissions – highlighting practical actions taken by member companies to improve GHG emissions management and work towards improving climate change impacts in the longer term.
These actions include significant investments in natural gas, carbon capture and storage, and renewable energy. Other key areas of focus set out by the OGCI include:
- Efficiency: optimising efficiency of their own operations; improving the end-use efficiency of their fuels and other products; and working with manufacturers and consumers to improve the efficiency of road vehicles.
- Natural gas: contributing to increasing the share of gas in the global energy mix, ensuring it results in significantly lower lifecycle emissions than other fossil fuels for power generation; eliminating ‘routine’ flaring and reducing methane emissions from their operations.
- Long-term solutions: investing in R&D and innovation to reduce GHG emissions; participating in partnerships to progress carbon capture and storage; contributing to increasing the share of renewables in the global energy mix.
- Partnerships and multi-stakeholder initiatives: seeking opportunities to accelerate climate change solutions by working collectively or individually in industry and other initiatives.
Brad Allen