Top Oil Companies Set Carbon Target Goals
2020-07-22
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1For the first time, a group of the world's top oil companies have set goals to cut carbon gas emissions as a percentage of their total production.
2Among the businesses agreeing to the effort were Saudi Aramco, China's CNPC and the American company ExxonMobil.
3The targets are the idea of an industry-led group, called the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative, or OGCI.
4Its 12 member companies are responsible for over 30 percent of the world's oil and gas production.
5The goals are based on what the OGCI members call "upstream carbon intensity."
6The target represents a reduction in production of between 36 and 52 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2025, the OGCI said in a press release.
7The organization estimates the reduction would be equal to the carbon dioxide emissions resulting from energy use in 4 to 6 million homes.
8The intensity targets mean that total carbon emissions can still rise as production increases.
9OGCI's chairman is Bob Dudley, a former chief of the London-based oil and gas company BP.
10He told Reuters news agency that while the agreement represents an important "milestone," it does not represent the end of efforts to reduce emission levels.
11"We'll keep calibrating as we go forward," Dudley added.
12The agreement came after the OGCI's European members individually announced plans for even deeper cuts.
13Among the companies setting those targets were BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total.
14The OGCI members agreed on a common methodology to measure carbon intensity.
15Dudley said the targets could be extended in the future to other areas, such as liquefied natural gas and refining operations.
16London-based research group Carbon Tracker dismissed the OGCI's claims that the targets met those of the 2015 Paris agreement to limit global warming.
17Carbon Tracker's Andrew Grant said in a statement that "Having some targets to reduce carbon pollution is better than none."
18But he added that the oil and gas industry can never be "aligned" with the Paris goals when the industry plans include continuous investment in fossil fuel production.
19The announcement marks a major change for ExxonMobil, the largest oil company in the United States.
20Exxon has resisted pressure from investors to be more open about the environmental effects of its products.
21The company has yet to report its carbon emissions for 2019.
22A spokesman for Exxon said it supports the OGCI targets and is "part of the industry's efforts to take practical, meaningful steps to reduce emissions."
23The goals set by individual companies can differ widely in definition and structure, making comparisons difficult.
24But the targets of some individual OGCI members are already higher than those set in the new agreement.
25OGCI said the group's collective carbon intensity would be reported once a year and the data would be examined by an independent group.
26I'm Bryan Lynn.
1For the first time, a group of the world's top oil companies have set goals to cut carbon gas emissions as a percentage of their total production. 2Among the businesses agreeing to the effort were Saudi Aramco, China's CNPC and the American company ExxonMobil. 3The targets are the idea of an industry-led group, called the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative, or OGCI. Its 12 member companies are responsible for over 30 percent of the world's oil and gas production. 4The goals are based on what the OGCI members call "upstream carbon intensity." The target represents a reduction in production of between 36 and 52 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2025, the OGCI said in a press release. The organization estimates the reduction would be equal to the carbon dioxide emissions resulting from energy use in 4 to 6 million homes. 5The intensity targets mean that total carbon emissions can still rise as production increases. 6OGCI's chairman is Bob Dudley, a former chief of the London-based oil and gas company BP. He told Reuters news agency that while the agreement represents an important "milestone," it does not represent the end of efforts to reduce emission levels. 7"We'll keep calibrating as we go forward," Dudley added. 8The agreement came after the OGCI's European members individually announced plans for even deeper cuts. Among the companies setting those targets were BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total. 9The OGCI members agreed on a common methodology to measure carbon intensity. Dudley said the targets could be extended in the future to other areas, such as liquefied natural gas and refining operations. 10London-based research group Carbon Tracker dismissed the OGCI's claims that the targets met those of the 2015 Paris agreement to limit global warming. 11Carbon Tracker's Andrew Grant said in a statement that "Having some targets to reduce carbon pollution is better than none." But he added that the oil and gas industry can never be "aligned" with the Paris goals when the industry plans include continuous investment in fossil fuel production. 12The announcement marks a major change for ExxonMobil, the largest oil company in the United States. Exxon has resisted pressure from investors to be more open about the environmental effects of its products. The company has yet to report its carbon emissions for 2019. 13A spokesman for Exxon said it supports the OGCI targets and is "part of the industry's efforts to take practical, meaningful steps to reduce emissions." 14The goals set by individual companies can differ widely in definition and structure, making comparisons difficult. But the targets of some individual OGCI members are already higher than those set in the new agreement. 15OGCI said the group's collective carbon intensity would be reported once a year and the data would be examined by an independent group. 16I'm Bryan Lynn. 17Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. was the editor. 18We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 19_________________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21emission - n. the act of sending gas, heat or light out into the air 22equivalent - adj. having the same amount, value, quality etc. 23per - prep. used when expressing rates, prices or measurements 24calibrate - v. to mark units of measurement on an instrument so that it can measure accurately 25refine - v. make a substance pure by removing unwanted material 26global warming - n. a gradual increase in world temperatures caused by gases such as carbon dioxide 27align - v. support a particular group or cause 28fossil fuel - n. a fuel, such as coal, oil, or natural gas, that is formed in the earth from dead plants or animals 29practical - adj. relating to experience or real situations rather than ideas or imagination 30data - n. information, especially facts or numbers, collected to be examined and considered in a decision-making process