After a record year in oil and gas profits, an oil giant is setting back its climate promises.
BP claimed to have almost doubled its profits in 2022 with a profit of $27.7 billion. Others have high profits, too: Shell stated it had a $41.6 billion profit last year and ExxonMobil reported an astounding $55.7 billion profit. Energy companies claim the increase in pricing was directly caused by the demand for oil and gas for the war between Ukraine and Russia.
The British oil company previously stated that it would aim for a 35%-40% cut in emissions by 2030 in hopes to have zero emissions by 2050. However, the company has taken back this statement and lowered its target to 20%-30% emissions reduction.
With this news, shareholders are putting more pressure on big oil and gas companies to follow the guidelines stated in the Paris Agreement on climate change.
Mark van Baal, founder of Follow This, told The Washington Post, “We have to regain momentum, or these companies will keep on saying they can continue with oil and gas because the majority of shareholders want them to do that. The fact that they are making so much money right now is not helping. It makes them think they have to go on with this.”
CEO of BP Bernard Looney said in a recent interview that “it’s clearer than ever after the past three years that the world wants and needs energy that is secure and affordable as well as lower carbon — all three together, what’s known as the energy trilemma.” He continued, “To tackle that, action is needed to accelerate the transition. And — at the same time — action is needed to make sure that the transition is orderly, so that affordable energy keeps flowing where it’s needed today.”
Critics complain that the oil company is not investing its money towards cleaner energy actions but rather keeping it for themselves.
Regarding the issue, Looney said, “Over the last three years, all the profit we’ve made in the North Sea we’ve either paid it all away in tax or reinvested it into Britain. Our role is to invest, our role is to pay our taxes and our role is to return our value to our shareholders who happen to be millions of people, not faceless institutions.”
According to The New York Times, under BP’s new plans, oil output will decline 25% by the end of the decade from 2019 levels, to two million barrels a day, as opposed to 40% as initially stated. Carbon dioxide emissions from the oil and natural gas that BP produces will also be reduced 20%-30%, instead of up to 40%. Claiming to be “shorter-term, fast-payback projects” in order to meet climate goals.