By Iman Hill
A clear direction in unclear times
About the author
Iman Hill is the Executive Director of The International Association of Oil & Gas Producers ( IOGP ). Mrs Hill is a Petroleum Engineer with 30 years ’ experience in the oil and gas industry and has held leadership roles at BP , Shell , and BG , among others .
Like you , I have been gripped by the crisis in Ukraine . The invasion is a crime , the humanitarian situation a tragedy , and the disruption to the energy supply a ticking time bomb . But has this disaster taken the focus away from another crisis , that of getting the world to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 ? Rising costs and the daily struggle of making ends meet has become the priority for the public . The climate is in danger of being pushed down the agenda of priorities , and this is not good . The much-anticipated recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC ) on adaptation and mitigation did not top the news . What has become clear is that climate change and energy security are wholly interdependent and should only be addressed together . When announcing plans to launch new licensing rounds for the North Sea , Kwasi Kwarteng , the UK Secretary of State for Business , Energy and Industrial Strategy , said , “ In such an uncertain world – and in a world where oil and gas are necessary – it would be foolish to turn the taps off on domestic production anytime soon .” Policymaking has cut emissions but needs to scale up rapidly if we are to achieve the levels of reductions we need . By 2020 , over 20 % of global emissions were covered by carbon taxes or emissions trading systems , but this has still been insufficient to achieve the deep reductions needed . It ’ s probably too early to determine how energy policy is likely to evolve because of Ukraine . We will need to see policymakers working to balance society ’ s needs for energy , keeping in mind the criticality of diversity of supply and energy security , along with climate and environmental objectives . Our industry must be part of the consultation on these policies because we will be producing and supplying that energy . A recent IEA report on methane emissions stated that “ tackling methane emissions from the energy sector represents one of the best near-term opportunities for limiting global warming because the pathways for reducing them are well known and often cost-effective . The oil and gas sector has the know-how and resources to take quick action .” Apart from tackling emissions , there are various technologies that enable CO2 emission reduction . Carbon removal is part of the net-zero equation and will be vital to keep the average global temperature rise less than 1.5 ° C above pre-industrial levels . This opens opportunities for our industry to accelerate technologies that we have been fostering for some time , such as methane management equipment , low-carbon hydrogen and carbon capture use and storage ( CCUS ). CCUS - a proven technology - can achieve deep emissions reductions in parts of the economy where full electrification is technically or economically unfeasible . But what has been and remains missing are the supporting government policies needed to commercialize it , deploy it at scale , and bring down costs . So , the message from the IPCC is clear : better policies and technologies are needed to help the world decarbonize . This is a huge opportunity for our sector . We don ’ t have to give up hydrocarbons to achieve net-zero by 2050 . The industry has already positioned itself on a path to helping achieve net-zero , but it ’ s not enough for us to continue doing what we ’ ve been doing . We need to broaden and intensify our existing efforts while continuously seeking new opportunities for decarbonization in our operations . Ultimately , we also need to make money from hydrocarbons today to fund the low-carbon technology we all need for tomorrow . IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee states that we have the tools and know-how to limit warming . I would go further and say that our industry holds much of that expertise and so must be brought in to collectively solve the problem of managing both climate change and the challenge of energy security . That is the key to a sustainable future .
46 Valve World August 2022 www . valve-world . net