OGCI Raises Emissions Cuts Targets

The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) said its members had in aggregate significantly reduced the methane and carbon intensities of their aggregated upstream businesses last year. Having beaten their targets, they are now raising them, it said October 19.

OGCI, a CEO-led initiative, comprises the European companies BP, Repsol, Eni, Total, Equinor and Shell; US Chevron, ExxonMobil and Occidental; China's CNPC; Brazil's Petrobras; and Saudi Aramco.

The methane leak target was 0.25%; last year it was 0.23% and the goal is reach 0.2% by 2025. So far they have cut upstream methane emissions by 22% since 2017. Upstream carbon emissions stood last year at 21.1 kg CO2e/barrel of oil equivalent (boe), down by 7% from 2017. The 2025 target range is 20-21kg CO2e/boe.

Progress so far has involved reducing absolute upstream (Scope 1 and 2) emissions by 21mn mt CO2e – equivalent to eliminating the emissions from energy use of 2.4mn US homes.

“We are on track to meet our 2025 ambitions. The progress to date is the result of member companies’ targeted work on emissions reduction and a variety of decarbonisation measures,” said OGCI’s executive committee chairman Jerome Schmitt.

Schmitt said that targets were helpful because they "focus minds, accelerate action, and inspire others in our sector and across our value chains. This progress strengthens our foundations to keep challenging and improving our collective actions.” OGCI said the data was part of its improved methodology and auditing process.