Yahoo Finance U.S. Oil Biggies Agree to Join OGCI to Curb Climate Change
In a concerted effort to curb carbon emissions, three major U.S. oil companies namely—Exxon Mobil Corporation XOM, Chevron Corporation CVX and Occidental Petroleum Corporation OXY —have finally joined the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI), which was formed in 2014. Notably, these are the only American companies to join the initiative, which aims at pooling promising technologies and business models to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. ExxonMobil, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum will become official members of OGCI on Sep 24. Each of these three companies carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The initiative currently includes 10 members including supermajors like BP plc BP, Royal Dutch Shell plc RDS.A and TOTAL S.A. TOT, Equinor, Petrobras, Repsol SA, Eni SpA, Saudi Aramco, China National Petroleum Corporation and Pemex Oil. Following the addition of the three companies, OGCI will account for 30% of global oil output. The addition of U.S. companies will also widen the global reach of OGCI, which currently includes companies from China, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.
In a bid to shift toward a low carbon economy, OGCI has created a $1 billion fund to support clean technologies. Members of the initiative are committed to collaborative efforts to reduce methane and carbon emissions along with improving energy efficiency by providing advanced technologies and practical solutions to address the adverse impacts of climate change.
Notably, in June 2017, American President Donald Trump pulled the country out of the landmark Paris climate change agreement, which was expected to bring an end to the fossil fuel era. Trump stated that the deal would hurt the economy, cut jobs, weaken American sovereignty, and put the country at a permanent disadvantage to other countries. While Trump’s decision was lauded by the industry advocates, it received major backlash from green crusaders.
Many companies have been accused of damaging the environment, with various states filing lawsuits against supermajors. However, many such cases have been dismissed. The plaintiffs have held fossil fuel companies accountable for rising sea levels, changing landscapes, higher global temperatures and increased risk of storms and droughts.
Oil companies, of late, have been under immense pressure from investors and green campaigners alike to mitigate climate change risks. Interestingly, the latest move marks a 180 degree turn for ExxonMobil and Chevron that have been reluctant in joining OGCI since its creation. ExxonMobil has especially been criticized many a times of publicly downplaying climate change facts stated by its own scientists. Acknowledging the goals of the Paris Climate Deal, ExxonMobil, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum will contribute $100 million each to the OGCI fund as their first endowment.
Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside?
Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana.
Ignited by new referendums and legislation, this industry is expected to blast from an already robust $6.7 billion to $20.2 billion in 2021. Early investors stand to make a killing, but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look.
See the pot trades we're targeting>>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
BP p.l.c. (BP) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDS.A) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
TOTAL S.A. (TOT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Chevron Corporation (CVX) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
