Intertek Group launched CarbonClear, which it claims is the world’s first independent carbon-intensity certification program that applies to all oil and gas producers. The company said CarbonClear evaluates emissions across all stages of exploration and production (E&P) and delivers a cradle-to-gate validation of the carbon impact of producing 1 BOE across an entire production portfolio, in aggregate, or by field.
The company cited results from a study of 506 global institutional investors completed in July by an independent research consultant company that revealed investors want oil and gas companies to be more transparent in disclosing the carbon emissions associated with the E&P process and 84% are looking for producers to put in place carbon-neutral plans. Over three-quarters of respondents surveyed said that they would actively use independent carbon certification data when deciding whether to invest into the sector, 90% want all oil and gas companies to adopt such a certification, and 98% believe that doing so would help the industry to be more transparent and supportive of sustainability.
When it comes to emissions, not all barrels of oil (or gas) are created equally and decarbonizing the production of oil and gas is imperative for the sector, alongside greater transparency in the disclosure of carbon content for every barrel produced. While globally recognized frameworks for evaluating greenhouse gas emissions are well established, oil and gas producers and investors are finding there is no existing framework that will allow for benchmarking production emissions against peers in the marketplace.
The research found that over 90% of investors who were polled agreed that it is currently a challenge comparing the carbon-reduction activities associated with oil and gas production.
The CarbonClear program is intended to allow producers to track net-carbon emissions reductions and performance improvements year-over-year to guide portfolio decisions to reduce carbon impact across their operations and provide data-driven insights to direct and support carbon-reduction goals.
André Lacroix, CEO of Intertek, said, “With the world having reached a tipping point in terms of sustainability, oil and gas producers need to measure, validate, and differentiate their reported carbon emissions in order to deliver their role in the energy transition.”
He added that the program provides a consistent and transparent evaluation framework that allows companies to benchmark the emissions associated with the E&P stage of the energy cycle against peers in the marketplace.