The world's oil and gas companies should set targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 at the upcoming COP28 global climate conference, the CEO of France's TotalEnergies Patrick Pouyanne said on Wednesday.
"If we can bring something to COP28 as an oil and gas industry ... (it) is not only IOCs (international oil companies) but also NOCs (national oil companies) should have some targets," Pouyanne told the OPEC Seminar conference, according to extracts shared by a source at the event.
Companies should set targets to reduce emissions from methane, a potent greenhouse gas that leaks from oil and gas infrastructure, as well as targets to reduce pollution from their own operations, known as Scope 1 and 2 emissions, by the end of the decade, Pouyanne said.
Setting targets would help "demonstrate to the world that this industry is able to lower emissions," he said.
The vast majority of emissions from oil and gas are produced from the burning and consumption of fuels, known as Scope 3 emissions, while emissions from their extraction and production typically account for around 15% of companies' overall carbon footprint.
The COP28 will be held in United Arab Emirates, a major oil and gas producer, in November and December.
TotalEnergies and its European rivals have all set some targets to reduce Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions while their U.S. peers and several leading national oil companies have only set targets to reduce emissions from their own operations.
Scientists say the world needs to cut greenhouse gas emissions by around 43% by 2030 from 2019 levels to stand any chance of meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement goal of keeping warming well below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels.
OPEC has withheld media access to reporters from Reuters, Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal to cover the event, which was partly broadcast online.
(Reuters - Reporting by Ron Bousso and Shadia NasrallaEditing by Dmitry Zhdannikov and Mark Potter)
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