OGR July - August Edition 2020

RENEWABLE ENERGY
Equinor Advocates for Stronger Climate Policies, Backs
Out from IPAA
misaligned with Equinor’s climate policy and
advocacy position,” the company said in its
review of industry associations.
Specifically, Equinor cited the IPAA’s
support for the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency’s (EPA) roll-back of U.S.
federal methane regulations, which the
company opposes.
U . S . P r e s i d e n t D o n a l d T r u m p ’ s
administration last year proposed to rescind
Obama-era limits on oil and gas industry
emissions of methane, one of the main
pollutants scientists link to climate change.
Eldar Sætre, president and CEO of Equinor
The IPAA said that membership of its
association was “a company-by-company
business decision”.
Equinor is advocating for
stronger climate policies, and
leading the way to demonstrate
further industry leadership on climate
change and strong support for the goals
of the Paris Agreement. The company
has climate at the core of its business
strategy and has set short - medium -
and long-term climate-related targets
for the company’s emissions to drive
performance.
"Equinor is developing as a broad
energy company, with oil and gas,
renewable energy and low carbon
solutions as integrated parts of our
business. We see our low carbon
strategy as a competitive advantage
which creates long term value for our
shareholders. The actions we announce
today make us even more competitive
in the energy transition, and support
the goals of the Paris Agreement. We
welcome the constructive engagement
and appreciate the collaboration with
investors as part of Climate Action
100+," says Eldar Sætre, President and
CEO of Equinor.
Early this year, Equinor launched a new
climate roadmap aiming to ensure a
competitive and resilient business
model in the energy transition, fit for
long term value creation and in line with
the Paris Agreement. The company
aims to reduce the net carbon intensity,
from initial production to final
consumption, of energy produced by at
least 50% by 2050; grow renewable
energy capacity tenfold by 2026,
developing as a global offshore wind
major, and strengthen its industry
leading position on carbon efficient
production, aiming to reach carbon neutral
global operations by 2030.
“Equinor’s strategic direction is clear. We
are developing as a broad energy company,
leveraging the strong synergies between oil,
gas, renewables, CCUS and hydrogen. We
will continue addressing our own emissions
in line with the emitter pays principle. But,
we can and will do much more. As part of the
energy industry, we must be part of the
solution to combat climate change and
address decarbonisation more broadly in
line with changes in society,” says Sætre.
In 2026, Equinor expects a production
capacity from renewable projects of 4 to 6
GW, Equinor share, mainly based on the
current project portfolio. This is around 10
times higher than today’s capacity, implying
an annual average growth rate of more than
30%. Towards 2035, Equinor expects to
increase installed renewables capacity
further to 12 to 16 GW, dependent on
a v a i l a b i l i t y o f a t t r a c t i v e p r o j e c t
opportunities.
Recently, Equinor announced that it will quit
the Independent Petroleum Association of
America (IPAA) lobby group over a
disagreement on climate policy, Reuters
reported. Equinor is undertaking a review of
its memberships of industry associations
under an agreement with a group of
institutional investors, the Climate Action
100+, signed in 2019.
The Washington-headquartered IPAA
represents thousands of independent oil
and natural gas producers and service
companies across the United States. “We
believe that IPAA’s lack of position on
climate leaves the association materially
“Our membership, represented by our
national board of directors, determines the
association’s policy positions,” a
spokeswoman said.
Equinor also said it would remain a member
of the American Petroleum Institute (API)
and the Australian Petroleum Production &
Exploration Association (APPEA) despite
“some misalignments” with the company’s
climate policies.
The group said it expected API to make
further progress in strengthening its support
for the Paris climate agreement, tightening
methane emissions regulations and marking
out a clearer stance on carbon pricing.
“We will also encourage APPEA to take a
clear stand on supporting carbon pricing in
Australia and not supporting carry over of
credits from the Kyoto protocol to the Paris
Agreement,” it added.
Under its agreement with Climate Action
100+, Equinor has committed to make sure
that all memberships in more than 100
industry associations, including oil, gas and
renewable energy, align with its support for
the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Climate Action 100+ is an investor initiative
to ensure the world’s largest corporate
greenhouse gas emitters take necessary
action on climate change. More than 320
investors with more than $33 trillion in
assets collectively under management are
engaging companies on improving
governance, curbing emissions and
strengthening climate-related financial
disclosures. The companies include 100
‘systemically important emitters’,
accounting for two-thirds of annual global
industrial emissions, alongside more than 60
others with significant opportunity to drive
the clean energy transition.
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