Equinor, Shell, and BP have been identified as the largest corporate investors in new fossil fuel extraction across developed markets, as global oil and gas exploration surged to pre-Covid levels, research finds.
Energy companies have spent £26.2bn on oil and gas exploration in the past 12 months, with prominent European firms emerging as key backers, according to new research by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) in collaboration with Rystad.
The research warns that if the newly discovered resources are fully exploited, they could unleash up to 12 billion tonnes of CO2, more than the past four years’ discoveries combined. This comes despite warnings by the International Energy Agency that no further oil and gas exploration is required if the world is to meet its 1.5°C global warming limit.
Emerging market governments are leading the drive towards new oil and gas exploration in terms of volume, with China, Russia, and Mexico on track to license the biggest volumes of oil and gas in the second half of 2024, the IISD said. However, rich countries, particularly the United States, Canada, Australia, Norway, and the UK, have issued two-thirds of the global number of oil and gas licences since 2020. Earlier this month, the new UK government confirmed that it would cease to issue new licences for oil exploration in the North Sea.
Climate-conscious investors had been pressuring Shell to implement a credible short-term carbon reduction strategy, with a record number of institutional shareholders backing a Follow This Resolution. However, their calls were rejected, with 78% of shareholders backing the oil giant’s new energy transition strategy, which does not foresee any cuts to oil production within this decade.
Similarly, at Equinor’s AGM, shareholders rejected a resolution put forward by Sarasin & Partners calling on the Norwegian energy giant to align its spending with climate targets.
BP’s AGM this year did not face any climate resolutions, as investors awaited the next steps from newly appointed CEO Murray Auchincloss, who took over the leadership of the British oil giant at the beginning of this year.
Shell AGM: shareholders back the firm's energy transition strategy
Shareholders back off BP to ramp up pressure on Shell and Exxon
