Page 11 - NorthAmOil Week 23 2021

NorthAmOil ENERGY TRANSITION NorthAmOil

Canada’s oil sands producers

form net-zero alliance

ALBERTA FIVE major Canadian producers announced collaboration between industry and govern-
this week that they were forming an alliance that ment, they added.
will work together to achieve net-zero green- The companies will also deploy existing
house gas (GHG) emissions from the country’s and emerging GHG reduction technologies
oil sands by 2050. at oil sands operations along the infrastruc-
The Oil Sands Pathways to Net Zero alliance ture corridor, including clean hydrogen, pro-
comprises Suncor Energy, Cenovus Energy, cess improvements, energy efficiency, fuel
Imperial Oil, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd switching and electrification. Additionally,
(CNRL) and MEG Energy. Between them, the they are planning to evaluate, pilot and accel-
five companies operate roughly 90% of Canada’s erate application of potential emerging emis-
oil sands production. sions-reducing technologies, which they said
The companies said the net-zero goal they include direct air capture (DAC), next-genera-
will pursue in the oil sands is aimed at helping tion recovery technologies and small modular
Canada meet its broader climate goals, including nuclear reactors.
its Paris Agreement commitments and its own The companies described their alliance as
net-zero aspirations for 2050. The announce- “unprecedented”. It was launched amid growing
ment comes two weeks after Suncor unveiled pressure on the oil and gas industry to do more
its own net-zero goal for 2050, joining Ceno- to decarbonise.
vus, CNRL and MEG, which had previously In late May, a new hedge fund, Engine No.
announced net-zero ambitions for their oil sands 1, succeeded in having three of ExxonMobil’s
operations. 12 board members replaced with its nominees,
“This collaborative effort follows welcome in a bid to guide the company towards lowering The
announcements from the government of Can- its GHG emissions. ExxonMobil is the majority
ada and the government of Alberta of important shareholder in Imperial, which came under pres- announcement
support programmes for emissions reduction sure separately earlier in May from Bâtirente, a
projects and infrastructure,” the companies Montreal-based retirement fund for union comes two weeks
stated. “Collaboration between industry and members of the Confédération des syndicats
government will be critical to progressing the Oil nationaux (CSN) trade union, to adopt a net- after Suncor
Sands Pathways to Net Zero vision and achieving zero goal. unveiled its own
Canada’s climate goals.” ExxonMobil’s 69.6% stake in Imperial was
The collaboration will be underpinned by enough to reject the Bâtirente proposal at the net-zero goal for
what the companies described as a “major” company’s May 4 annual meeting. However,
carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) the Financial Post noted that excluding the 2050.
trunkline along an infrastructure corridor con- super-major’s vote, a majority of the independ-
necting oil sands facilities in the Fort McMurray ent shareholders – 58% – had voted in favour of
and Cold Lake to a carbon sequestration hub. Imperial adopting a net-zero pledge and interim
The intention is that multiple sectors will be able targets for emissions.
to use the hub to capture their carbon dioxide Despite this, Imperial now seems to be
(CO2) emissions. embracing net zero by joining the Oil Sands
The proposed CCUS system will be similar Pathways to Net Zero alliance. This may be in
to the multi-billion dollar Longship/Northern part out of a recognition that shareholder battles
Lights project in Norway as well as other CCUS over climate change are becoming more com-
projects in the Netherlands, UK and US, the monplace and that producers will have to adapt
companies said. All of those projects involve to this new reality.™

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