The five largest western oil companies made an incredible profit of 195 billion US dollars in 2022. The “Big Five”, ie Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Shell, BP and Total, made a profit of 6100 US dollars per second. My colleagues Bastian Brinkmann and Nakissa Salavati took a closer look at how these profits came about (SZ Plus).
The big question now is what these numbers mean for climate protection. After all, the profits come predominantly from the extraction and sale of fossil raw materials, the main cause of man-made climate change. The reaction of BP is revealing here. The British company, which once wrote the motto “Beyond Petroleum” on the flags, announced at the same time as announcing its annual profit of 28 billion US dollars that it would scale down its climate protection ambitions. Instead of reducing total CO₂ emissions by 35 to 40 percent by 2030, BP is only aiming for a reduction of 20 percent. Conversely, this means that the group wants to produce more oil and gas than previously planned – which means that more greenhouse gases will be released into the atmosphere.
And where do the profits go? A large part is to be distributed to the shareholders. Significantly less is planned for the conversion of the climate-damaging business model. By 2030, for example, BP’s investments in climate-friendly technologies are expected to increase to eight billion US dollars a year, for example for charging stations for electromobility, renewable energies and hydrogen technology. However, another eight billion are earmarked for investments in oil and gas production in 2030. The group is therefore sticking to its core fossil business.
The situation is hardly different for the other “Big Five”. Shell about stuck according to a report by the organization “Global Witness” in 2021 only around 1.5 percent of its financial resources in solar and wind projects. And hardly any oil company has a strategy to become climate neutral by 2050. So one should probably not rely too much on the fossil fuel industry to slow down climate change.
Given this inaction and the astronomical profits at a time when high energy prices are weighing on many households, the question also arises as to whether the profits should be siphoned off by the state. The colleagues from the business department have put together what speaks for and what against (SZ Plus). An excess profit tax could possibly help society quickly in a crisis situation – but it is anything but easy and fair to implement.
(This text is from the weekly Newsletter climate friday you here for free can order.)