BP was responsible for the Deep Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, which has devastated the local communities for the past decade. August 8. 2020 by Ramona du Houx British Petroleum (BP), the energy company that grew from oil and gas production, is taking its business in a new direction, announcing on August 4, 2020 that it […]
BP was responsible for the Deep Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, which has devastated the local communities for the past decade.
August 8. 2020
by Ramona du Houx
British Petroleum (BP), the energy company that grew from oil and gas production, is taking its business in a new direction, announcing on August 4, 2020 that it will slash its oil and gas production by 40 percent and increase its annual investment in low-carbon technology to $5 billion, a ten-fold increase over its current level, according to CNN.
“We believe our new strategy provides a comprehensive and coherent approach to turn our net zero ambition into action,” BP chief executive Bernard Looney said in a statement Tuesday. “This coming decade is critical for the world in the fight against climate change, and to drive the necessary change in global energy systems will require action from everyone.”
BP lost $16.8 billion in the second quarter of 2020, and clearly sees the writing on the wall. The company’s plan says it wants to become a leading purveyor of clean energy. When announced its share price soared 7 percent Tuesday, as The New York Times reported.
This coming decade is critical for the world in the fight against the climate crisis. We are in a climate emergency.
“To drive the necessary change in global energy systems will require action from everyone,” BP said in a statement.
According to The Washington Post part of BP’s plan, will be to stop its oil and gas exploration in new countries and reduce its current production and carbon emissions by one-third.
BP was responsible for the 2010 tragic Deep Horizon oil spill that still hasn’t been totally cleaned up. The oil rig’s explosion killed 11 men and unleashed more than 100m gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. On April 20, 2015 BP set aside $42 billion to pay fines, compensate victims and clean up the sea and the coastline. But life there is still upended.
Many think with BP’s shift policy the writing is on the wall for oil and gas companies.
Other mega oil corporations are struggling from the pandemic and the economic downturn. ExxonMobil and Chevron last week reported sharp drops in earnings. Exxon lost $1.1 billion and Chevron lost $8.3 billion in the second quarter. Production fell 7 percent at Exxon and 3 percent at Chevron.
BP expects demand for fossil fuels to fall by 75 percent by 2050, if the increase in global temperatures is limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius, or by 50 percent if warming is less than 2 degrees.
