ExxonMobil launches low carbon business

ExxonMobil will build on its existing low-carbon technology and projects to create a new business unit focused on carbon capture and storage.

ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions will pull under its umbrella more than 20 existing projects around the globe aimed at large-scale emissions reductions. The unit, which will invest $3bn on lower emission energy projects and technology through 2025, will be led by Joe Blommaert, the company's former senior vice-president of global chemicals operations.

The announcement came a day before the company was expected to report on a tough fourth quarter and as it faces increasing pressure from shareholders to improve its financial and environmental performance.

ExxonMobil has an equity share in about one-fifth of global CO2 capture capacity, it said, and added that its projects are responsible for 40pc of all man-made CO2 that has been captured. ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions will also tap the major's hydrogen production expertise, which will likely play a significant role in large-scale emissions reductions efforts when tied to carbon capture and sequestration.

The new unit has several projects on tap, including a plan to collect millions of tons of CO2 from US Gulf coast industrial facilities to store in onshore and offshore geologic formations.

While oil and gas companies have been making efforts to reduce emissions for several years, the steep downturn in oil demand last year combined with investor concerns over many years of substandard returns have sped up investing in lower-emissions technologies. Occidental Petroleum late last year committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050, while ConocoPhillips has also pledged to significantly cut its emissions in the next decade.

By Tom Fowler