Majors' capex ignores Paris Agreement risk

Report finds investments will not deliver adequate profits if carbon emissions are limited to a level that keeps global warming 'well below' two degrees

Every oil and gas major last year sanctioned investment in projects that would not produce sufficient returns if national leaders stick to their commitments to the COP 21 Paris Agreement, according to a new report by NGO Carbon Tracker. "There is a finite limit to global carbon emissions that can be released for the world to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement—the carbon budget. We find that no oil and gas companies currently reflect these limits in their investment processes," report co-author and analyst Mike Coffin tells Petroleum Economist. The 2015 agreement requires governments to constrain greenhouse gas emissions to levels that equate to global warming remaining 'well below' two d