InfluenceMap’s Post

Many oil and gas companies justify their significant scope 3 emissions by pointing to consumer demand, claiming it's beyond their control. Our new InfluenceMap report challenges this argument by uncovering a strategic playbook designed to protect and sustain the societal and market forces favoring fossil fuels. This long-standing use of misleading narratives has likely delayed the energy transition for decades and continues to pose a serious threat to climate policy progress.

This is an excellent analysis of the narratives that the oil and gas industry has disseminated to slow the transition to a decarbonized economy. These narratives have diverted the attention of policy makers, bankers and other key actors away from fundamental climate realities, as highlighted by the IPCC: high upfront costs limit adoption of renewables and energy efficiency, and therefore, these technologies struggle to compete with incumbent fossil fuels despite their enormous societal benefits (including dramatic cost savings over time). As the IPCC has said, "technology specific" policy is a proven winner for renewable and energy efficient technologies. So, whenever you hear the oil and gas industry promote "technology neutral" policy, remember that the status quo is still largely designed for oil and gas, the biggest threat to a livable climate.

Thanks for helping spread the word, Jack Sterne. Investors in the transition need to know that the transition is inevitable but the pace will be decided by whether these attempts to stymie market forces are successful. And thanks to InfluenceMap for pulling together these data.

#climatecriminals? In a world of climate chaos, they're thriving. Reveling in their planet burning profits... "...foss fuel lobbyists have been using the same playbook to delay the transition to renewables for 57 years. “However, this report challenges this narrative by uncovering a strategic playbook designed to protect and sustain the societal and market forces favouring fossil fuels. This long-standing use of misleading narratives has likely delayed the energy transition for decades and continues to pose a serious threat to climate policy progress.” "The fossil fuel playbook That fossil fuel companies and their lobbyists have been fighting to turn the world against climate science and scientists isn’t new. In 1998, fossil fuel companies including ExxonMobil and Chevron hired PR consultant Joe Walker to develop a plan to wreck the Kyoto protocol via a global misinformation campaign, using a network of friendly scientists and think tanks to cast doubt on the science..."

57 companies are linked to 80 % of global emissions! But I am not surprised, there was a similar study a couple of years back showing the approx same figures. At the same time articles are published that investments in renewable energy are to low to reach the Paris Agreement. This is the key to solve the climate crisis. We need to scale investments for renewable energy and we need to make it easier to get permits to build renewable energy parks! One good news from yesterday is that Aurora (offshore wind in the Baltic Sea) got an environmental permit, the park will produce up to 17 % of total electricity need for Sweden. https://lnkd.in/d9VJjTqh

Yet more research on oil and gas giants’ persistent lobbying hindering global energy shift. New research from InfluenceMap has revealed that major oil and gas industry associations in the US and Europe have been employing a consistent ‘playbook of narratives’ for the past five decades to slow the global energy transition. The goal, according to the report, has been to oppose, weaken and delay the adoption of renewable energy and electric vehicles (EVs), despite growing scientific consensus on the urgent need for climate action. Key findings highlight three narratives used by these industry groups. First, “Solution Skepticism” has persisted for 56 years, casting doubt on the efficacy of renewable energy sources and emphasising uncertainties. Second, “Policy Neutrality,” in use for 34 years, advocates for minimal government intervention and instead promotes market solutions and consumer choice. Third, “Affordability and Energy Security,” active for 51 years, posits fossil fuels as essential for maintaining cost-effective and secure energy supplies, framing alternatives as risky. The report underscores that these narratives, which often contradict science-aligned policies recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), continue to influence public discourse and policy-making.

The United States cannot meet its Paris Agreement commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions without a transition to clean energy the nation's power sector. The power sector ranks second in total greenhouse emissions, after transportation, and is responsible for a quarter of the nation's emissions. The results of a new 2023 report which examined 77 utilities across the country and their plans (if any) to retire coal plants and stop the construction of new fracked gas plants are quite disturbing. Given the decline in the cost of solar, wind, batteries, the fact that the utility industry is not moving at the pace necessary in the face of the climate crisis is inexcusable. While utilities talk-up their net-zero transition on their websites, it is not being translated into actual policy and delivered outcomes E.g., Southern Company and its subsidiaries, Alabama power, Georgia power, and Mississippi Power which together serve 9 million people get an F on a national report card tracking the progress of their plans to transition away from fossil fuels. The Report, aptly called The Dirty truth about Utility Climate Pledges: 2023 Annual Report (https://lnkd.in/g8EkARwx), reveals that there is an embedded business-as-usual culture operating within these utilities despite the Inflation Reduction Act which has made billions of dollars available through tax credits and other incentives and they are simply making hypocritical public displays of embracing clean energy and have not updated their plans and investment decisions and are continuing to build MORE fossil fuel plants. 65% of utilities operating coal plants have no plans to shut down this decade despite the evidence that 99% of the coal fleet in the US is more expensive to run than it would be if they were replaced with solar and wind and deliver cheaper energy for their customers. (https://lnkd.in/g-gmm9qk) Utility companies such as Duke Energy, which has the largest coal capacity in the US, plans to retire only 30% of their coal capacity and plans to build new methane gas plants while concurrently going through the process of greenwashing their public image with net-zero "pledges" Climate denialism is rampant in the US utility industry. Southern's CEO Tom Fanning the powerful nationwide trade association Edison Electric Institute's Dan Brouillette, who served under Trump as Secretary of Energy, are both on the record in questioning the "role of human activity" and "scientific evidence" in climate change.

https://lnkd.in/gygXX_zZ This is significant! Many of us have been campaigning for incorporating environment into the National Electricity Objective for more than 15 years so this is so great to see. For years we have had to argue why decisions right across the energy system need to take into consideration decarbonisation and broader climate/environmental goals but faced consistent push back due to the narrow scope of the NEO (I explained it a bit more here in 2022; https://lnkd.in/dBUZnXSF). In the early 2010's when a bunch of cross sector orgs came together to jointly advocate on this it copped a lot of push back and continued to seem like an impossible thing to get over the line. It was also hard to explain why it was so critical even though it clearly was affecting even the smallest of energy rule change proposals and market decisions. So this is a great decision and advocacy win and goes to show sometimes things just take a really bloody long time!

💡 Welcome refinement to emissions assessment methodology! The National Greenhouse Account (NGA) Factors document's latest revisions are driving significant improvements in the field of carbon accounting. By aligning with Climate Active methodologies, it paves the way for greater harmony, accuracy, and insight, in emissions reporting. ➡️ In case you missed it, we dissect these changes in our blog post to help you navigate the evolving landscape of emissions assessment - Link available in the comment section ⬇ #NGAFactors #EmissionsManagement #SustainableFuture

💡 Welcome refinement to emissions assessment methodology! The National Greenhouse Account (NGA) Factors document's latest revisions are driving significant improvements in the field of carbon accounting. By aligning with Climate Active methodologies, it paves the way for greater harmony, accuracy, and insight, in emissions reporting. ➡️ In case you missed it, we dissect these changes in our blog post to help you navigate the evolving landscape of emissions assessment - Link available in the comment section ⬇ #NGAFactors #EmissionsManagement #SustainableFuture