And new financial results – records are again set in the energy sector and this time they are for British giant BP, which announced a profit of $ 28 billion (27.6 billion to be exact) in 2022, while increasing its dividend by 10% to its shareholders. This profit surpassed another 2008 record of $26 billion and was achieved despite the write-down of assets in Russia. At the same time, however, BP has angered climate activists by abandoning its plans to cut oil and gas production, fossil fuels, and cut carbon emissions by 2030. and Chevron last week after energy prices rose following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. These developments are once again sparking fresh calls for further taxation in the sector as households struggle to pay their electricity bills. Three years after CEO Bernard Looney led an ambitious plan to switch BP from oil and gas to renewables and low-carbon energy, the company said it would increase annual spending across the two sectors by $1 billion, with more focus on developing low pollution fuels such as biofuels and hydrogen.

However, it has abandoned plans to cut oil production, now aiming to produce 2 million oil-equivalent barrels per day by 2030, just 25% below 2019 levels compared to earlier claims of a 40% cut. As a result, BP has revised down its ambition to cut emissions from fossil fuels sold to customers to 20-30% by 2030 from 35-40% previously, although it remains aiming for zero total emissions by 2050. While many investors have backed Looney’s strategy, which he says is working, its share price has lagged that of other leading Western competitors since he took over its helm. It remained virtually unchanged when offset by a 17% increase for Shell and a nearly 80% increase for Exxon. “If the majority of your investments are still in fossil fuels, and you even intend to increase these investments, you cannot claim to be in line with the UN climate change targets for 2015,” said Mark van Baal, founder shareholder. activist group Follow This. In 2021, a Dutch court ordered rival oil company Shell to commit itself to cutting its total emissions by 45% by 2030 from 2019 levels, a decision Shell is appealing.