London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 22, 2025

Fossil fuels: 20 oil and gas firms who support Paris Agreement projected to spend $932bn on new sites by 2030

All 20 firms have voiced support for the Paris Agreement, but UN scientists warn any new oil and gas sites would put 1.5C Paris goal beyond reach. 20 fossil fuel firms including Shell and BP are projected to spend $932 billion (£715 bn) on new oil and gas fields by 2030.
All the oil majors have pledged support for the Paris Agreement, which commits to limiting global warming to ideally 1.5C above pre-industrial levels - firms who hadn't were discounted from the list.

The analysis from campaigners Global Witness and Oil Change International comes a week after the United Nations (UN) called it "moral and economic madness" to invest in new oil and gas.

UN scientists (IPCC) warned those assets risked becoming stranded by mid-century, and that new fossil fuel projects would tip the world well over the 1.5C Paris target.

Investments from companies that say they are aligned with Paris look "deeply hypocritical" and stand in "stark contrast" with the IPCC's findings, said Global Witness campaigner Barnaby Pace.

Russian state company Gazprom topped the list with a predicted spend of $138bn (£105bn), Shell ranked ninth with $46bn and BP fourteenth with $30bn, according to the researchers' analysis of Rystad Energy data.

The figures cover new oil and gas sites being explored or developed, not those already up and running.

"We aren't ready to stop using oil and gas overnight, but these are investments in new oil and gas fields that will be only coming online in years or decades to come," added Mr Pace.

By the end of 2040, the collective spend is expected to reach $1.5 trillion, the analysis shows.

Clean energy investments by the oil and gas industry accounted for around 1% of total capital expenditure in 2020, according to the International Energy Agency.

ExxonMobil - which ranked second with a projected spend of $83bn - said it planned to invest $15bn in "lower-emissions technologies". These include hydrogen, biofuels, and technology to suck carbon out of the air - which scientists say is necessary and should be reserved for very limited sectors - but not renewable energy, other than to electrify some operations.

Shell expects a gradual decline in total oil production of about 1-2% a year, and plans to invest around £15bn in "low and zero-carbon" energy - including offshore wind and hydrogen - in Britain, representing 75% of their UK investment.

Chevron said oil and natural gas are "critical to ensuring reliable energy for decades" and it was reducing the emissions from the extraction process.

"As the energy transition unfolds, demand for fossil fuels will likely fall and companies must ensure that they... don't sanction high cost products that are not needed and ultimately will fail to deliver a return to their shareholders," said Mike Coffin from financial think tank Carbon Tracker.

That means companies planning on sanctioning new oil and gas projects are "thus effectively betting both on the collective failure to limit warming to 1.5 degrees, and on [the failure of] renewables and technologies such as battery storage to substitute for oil and gas," he said.

The British Government last week sparked criticism when it confirmed in its new Energy Security Strategy it would grant new licences for new oil and gas fields in the North Sea.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
×