ExxonMobil creates Low Carbon Solutions

ExxonMobil last week said it has created a new business to commercialise its extensive lowcarbon technology portfolio. The new business, ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions, will initially focus on carbon capture and storage, one of the critical technologies required to achieve net-zero emissions and the climate goals outlined in the Paris Agreement.

ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions is advancing plans for more than 20 new carbon capture and storage opportunities around the world to enable large-scale emission reductions.

ExxonMobil plans to invest US$3 billion on lower-emission energy solutions through 2025. The business will be led by Joe Blommaert, who has more than 30 years of experience in the industry with leadership roles in technology advancement, product marketing, and operations. The board of directors elected him as a vice president of Exxon Mobil Corporation.

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is the process of capturing CO2 that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere from industrial activity and injecting it into deep geologic formations for safe, secure and permanent storage. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the International Energy Agency agree that CCS is one of the most important low-carbon technologies required to achieve societal climate goals at the lowest cost. CCS is also one of the only technologies that could enable some industry sectors to decarbonise, including the refining, chemicals, cement and steel sectors.

ExxonMobil has more than 30 years of experience in CCS technology and was the first company to capture more than 120 million tonnes of CO2, which is equivalent to the emissions of more than 25 million cars for one year. The company has an equity share in about one-fifth of global CO2 capture capacity and has captured approximately 40% of all the captured anthropogenic CO2 in the world.

ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions will also leverage ExxonMobil’s significant experience in the production of hydrogen, which, when coupled with CCS, is likely to play a critical role in a lower-carbon energy system. Other technology focus areas in ExxonMobil’s low carbon portfolio will be added in the future as they mature to commercialisation.

“With our demonstrated leadership in carbon capture and emissions reduction technologies, ExxonMobil is committed to meeting the demand for affordable energy while reducing emissions and managing the risks of climate change,” said Darren Woods, chairman and CEO.

“We are focused on proprietary projects and commercial partnerships that will have a demonstrably positive impact on our own emissions as well as those from the industrial, power generation and commercial transportation sectors, which together account for 80% of global CO2 emissions. We have the expertise that can help bring technologies to market and make a meaningful difference.”

The business will seek to develop partnerships and collaborations on a wide range of technologies and be responsible for the marketing of emission-reduction credits created through the business’ sequestration projects.

New CCS projects and partnerships under evaluation include the US Gulf Coast,

Wyoming,USA,theNetherlands, Belgium, Scotland, Singapore and Qatar.

The new projects will complement ExxonMobil’s current carbon capture capacity in the United States, Australia and Qatar, which totals about 9 million tonnes per year, or the equivalent of planting 150 million trees every year.