Oil and Gas Methane Emissions Pose Risks to Investors (US)

Washington, D.C. and London, October 20, 2016 - Oil and gas industry investors face increasing financial, reputational and regulatory risks from widespread methane emissions. An Investor’s Guide to Methane: Engaging with Oil and Gas Companies to Manage a Rising Risk, released today by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), is a first-of-its kind guide to help investors manage methane risk through company engagement.

Methane – the primary component of natural gas and a climate pollutant 84 times more powerful than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period – is responsible for a quarter of the warming happening today. The oil and gas sector is the largest industrial source of methane emissions globally, costing an estimated $30 billion in lost product each year. While some companies are beginning to engage more deeply, an EDF report found that as of early 2016, none of the 65 leading upstream and midstream oil and gas companies operating in the United States disclosed methane reduction targets, and less than a third disclosed baseline emissions information via accessible, investor-facing data sources.

This April, global investors backed by $3.6 trillion in assets highlighted methane emissions as a growing investment risk and supported the United States and Canada adopting methane emission reduction targets of up to 45% by 2025. Investor support from Europe, the largest natural gas importer, totaled $2.1 trillion dollars.

“Investors were stunned by the widespread underreporting of methane emissions management uncovered in EDF’s ground-breaking Rising Risk report, and asked for a practical guide to engage oil and gas companies. This guide can help investors manage methane risks and keep more saleable product in the pipeline - a win-win for investors, companies, and communities,” said lead author Sean Wright, senior manager at EDF.

“The evidence is clear that methane emissions are an important financial and environmental risk in the oil and gas industry,” said Jonas Kron, Senior Vice President at Trillium Asset Management. “This guide provides investors with an extremely valuable tool to understand these risks. But even more importantly, it gives them the ability to engage with senior management in constructive dialogue to identify concrete actions to improve methane performance. Oil and gas executives should expect to hear from their shareholders in short order.”

“The business case for methane risk mitigation is well-defined. With growing global action to slow climate change and new regulatory approaches, companies are increasingly exposed to financial, regulatory and reputational risks on methane. Companies cannot turn a blind-eye to disclosure and reduction targets,” said Gemma James, manager of environmental issues at PRI.

Political and market momentum to address climate change is increasing. As countries look for pathways to fulfill their international greenhouse gas reduction commitments stemming from the historic Paris climate accord in December 2015, reducing methane emissions is a quick and cost-effective lever to reduce the rate of warming now.