Canadian Oil and Gas Companies Failing on Environmental Commitment

According to a report published by the Pembina Institute, members of the Pathways Alliance, an oil and gas industry group that represents 95% of Canada’s oilsands producers, haven’t done much to fulfill their commitment to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2050.

Under the Pathways Alliance, Canada’s 6 major oilsands –Cenovus, Suncor, Canadian Natural Resources, MEG Energy, Imperial Oil and ConocoPhillips– producers and two existing oilsands organizations committed to addressing the country’s climate change objectives last year.

Pathways Alliance president Kendall Diling said in a statement that the pledge involves targets for the oil sands sector to achieve a 22 million ton annual decrease by 2030 and a goal of reaching net-zero emission by 2050.

Diling said that the Pathways Alliance “recognizes it has a major role to play in helping Canada meet its climate goals.”

“Expectations by the Pembina Institute that Pathways Alliance companies make final investment decisions on these multi-billion-dollar projects before governments have finalized regulatory frameworks to support them are unrealistic.”

According to Jan Gorski, director of the oil and gas program at the Pembina Institute, the Government of Alberta has implemented or is in the process of implementing several initiatives, including the incoming Investment Tax Credit, the finalization of green fuel regulations, the carbon pricing system, and the cap on oilsands emissions.

“There’s actually a lot more on the table now than when Pathways was announced,” he said.

According to Diling, Pathways Alliance has already joined with Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance and the Oil Sands Community Alliance to mitigate the negative effects of oilsands on the environment.

The report’s authors, however, are interested in learning more about carbon capture projects and how much money will be invested in them to help reduce emissions.

Canada’s oil and gas industry is projected to bring in $152 billion in revenue in 2022, according to the report. While profits have increased, nothing has been put toward decarbonization or creating new jobs in the sector.

According to the report, the companies from the Pathway Alliance have been putting their money into share repurchases and dividend payments rather than green initiatives.

Original source material for this article taken from here