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IPCC clarion call puts spotlight on fossil fuel industry’s hypocrisy [1]

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Date: 2023-05

Hypocrites at work

Global Witness and Oil Change International analysed data by Rystad Energy that projects investments of the world’s 20 largest fossil fuel producers that claim to support the Paris Climate Agreement. If these corporations were serious about aiming to limit global warming to 1.5°C, as world leaders set out in 2015, they would need to have ceased all investments in new oil and gas projects.

In fact, the IPCC report laid out this week that the world needs to use “far less fossil fuel than today”. In addition, they said “without early retirements, or reductions in utilisation, the current fossil infrastructure will emit more [greenhouse gas emissions] than is compatible with limiting warming to 1.5°C."

This is not new. The IPCC does not produce original research but summarises the state of climate science. Researchers, civil society organisations and the International Energy Agency have all called for a stop on new fossil fuel developments.

However, despite affirming the goals of the Paris Agreement, private companies like Shell, Chevron, Eni and ExxonMobil seem to be banking on a future where polluting fossil fuels continue to be profitable. The same holds for majority state-owned companies whose governments have signed the agreement themselves, such as Russia’s Gazprom, Saudi Aramco, PetroChina and Norway’s Equinor.

Based on projections by the industry analyst Rystad Energy, the 20 largest oil and gas companies are expected to invest $932 billion in developing new oil and gas fields - in just 9 years. By the end of 2040 the figure grows to a staggering $1.5 trillion.

This is projected expenditure on exploring new oil and gas fields that have already been discovered and developing those fields to a state where they are ready for oil and gas production.

Gazprom makes up almost a third of projected investments in new fossil gas by 2030, with France’s TotalEnergies and Britain’s Shell among the top five investors. Both have highly publicised net-zero plans to limit global warming and Total changed its name to signal a shift towards more climate-friendly energy sources. Yet, Rystad data shows that combined, both are expected to spend more than $60 billion on developing new fossil gas projects.

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[1] Url: https://www.globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/fossil-gas/ipcc-clarion-call-puts-spotlight-on-fossil-fuel-industrys-hypocrisy/?utm_source=hootsuite&utm_medium=twitter_

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