Please tax our products

Text of letter signed by CEOs of six European oil producers distributed to the media this week.

Sir, Ahead of UN talks on climate change in Paris in December, we write to highlight the major role natural gas can play in addressing climate change. We believe the pragmatic step of implementing a widespread and effective pricing of carbon emissions is critical to realizing the full and positive impact natural gas can have. As a group of business people, we are united in our concern about the challenge — and the threat — posed by climate change. We urge governments to take decisive action at December’s UN summit. We are also united in believing such action should recognize the vital roles of natural gas and carbon pricing in helping to meet the world’s demand for energy more sustainably. Renewable energy has an increasing role to play — and our companies have significant investments in renewable energy too. However, the need to cut emissions is so essential that we have to pursue all options to lower carbon while providing the energy the world needs to meet demand from a growing population seeking better living standards. Natural gas can help deliver this. For natural gas, the case is simple: when burned to make electricity, it typically generates around half the carbon emissions of coal. In addition, gas can provide the electricity base load that is required and can be a flexible partner to renewables as efforts continue to improve the storage of electricity produced by intermittent solar or wind. This benefit is enhanced when naturalgas emissions all along the value chain are controlled and reduced, a matter we are actively addressing with peers. However, our request to policy-makers as they prepare for the UN talks is not to ask for special treatment for any resource, including natural gas, or any single route to a lower-carbon future. It is rather to ensure that the outcome of these talks leads to widespread carbon pricing in all countries. We have detailed our view on carbon pricing in a letter sent to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the president of the Paris conference. We owe it to future generations to seek realistic, workable solutions to the challenge of providing more energy while tackling climate change. We urge governments to create the incentives that will encourage all contributors to a more sustainable future. Helge Lund, BG Group Bob Dudley, BP PLC Claudio Descalzi, Eni Ben van Beurden, Royal Dutch Shell Eldar Saetre, Statoil Patrick Pouyanné, Total