Top executives agree on climate change

PARIS, October 19, 2015 – Executives from 10 top oil and gas companies pledged their support for an initiative to limit greenhouse gases Friday, ahead of the UN summit on climate change in December. The leaders, from companies such as BP, Saudi Aramco, Pemex and Total, have issued a joint statement saying they recognise the need to limit greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition to vowing to reduce gas flaring in oil and gas operations, some of the leaders called for a global carbon pricing system to incentivise clean energy use as well as research and development in the private sector.

In an attempt to sway governments away from the use of “dirty” fuels such as coal, the energy leaders insist that fossil fuels can play an important role in future emissions reductions and energy efficiency.

“Whatever people think, we still need fossil fuels. We need to make advocacy for gas. We need to explain to our policy makers that gas has to be encouraged,” Patrick Pouyanné, CEO of Total, said at a Paris conference on Thursday.