Ten of the world’s leading oil and gas companies including Saudi Aramco have vowed to help fight climate change, notably by shifting toward cleaner natural gas.
The initiative to limit climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions comes six weeks ahead of a critical summit in Paris to negotiate a global climate rescue pact.
“We are committed to playing our part,” chief executives of the 10 companies in the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative said in a joint statement, adding that they “recognize” the goal of limiting the global average temperature rise to two degrees Celsius (3.6 Farenheit).
The companies — Saudi Aramco, BG Group, BP, Eni, Pemex, Reliance, Industries, Repsol, Shell, Statoil and Total — account for nearly a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas production.
Speaking in Paris, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser said: “As our track record shows, Saudi Aramco is committed to playing its part. Energy efficiency has been and will continue to be a top priority in everything we do to both benefit the Kingdom and to maintain our position as the world’s largest, most reliable oil and gas producer.”
Nasser added: “We believe that partnerships and collaboration are essential to address global challenges. We are therefore proud to be a founding member of the OGCI, which helps to put the oil and gas industry at the forefront of solutions to climate change and help demonstrate that a technology-driven, industry-enabled approach is the only viable way forward.”