Exxon Mobil Corp has created a division to commercialize its technology that helps reduce carbon emissions, as the U.S. oil major looks to step up efforts against climate change amid rising pressure from investors and activists.
The move comes as Exxon looks to burnish its environmental credentials as it engages in a proxy fight with hedge fund Engine No. 1, which is attempting to appoint candidates on the oil company's board and push toward a more renewables-focused future.
The oil major said it would invest $3 billion on lower-emission solutions through 2025, by which time it plans to reduce the intensity of its oilfield greenhouse gas emissions by 15%-20% from 2016 levels.
"We have the expertise that can help bring technologies to market and make a meaningful difference," said Exxon Chief Executive Darren Woods.
Exxon said its Low Carbon Solutions would initially focus on carbon capture, adding that it was looking at storing carbon dioxide in underground caverns along the U.S. Gulf Coast and in depleted North Sea offshore gas fields among other options.
The United Nations has said carbon removal technology will be necessary to limit the increase in planetary warming to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius, the goal of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.
Exxon's efforts would compete with Occidental Petroleum Corp's Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, which is looking to develop the largest ever facility to pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
(Reporting by Rithika Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)
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