'Critical mass' of polluters setting carbon targets

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A UN-backed report has said that the number of big polluters setting targets to cut CO2 emissions has reached a critical mass.

The Science-Based Targets Initiative said that firms in Asia, Africa and Latin America are lagging behind.

The report cast doubt on whether oil companies can deliver on their promises.

The think tank said that big oil firms are relying on new technologies.

The Science-Based Targets Initiative advises firms on how to set emissions reduction targets.

More than 2,000 firms worth $38tn have adopted targets across 70 countries in 15 industries.

In the most polluted sectors, a critical mass of firms has joined the initiative.

They think this could be a tipping point, as the giants influence actions across the entire supply chain.

More than half of the companies setting targets are in the G7 rich nations, but there are also participants from China, India, Brazil, South Korea and South Africa.

The report says Canada and Italy are behind. Asia and Africa need more participants.

• Around 80% of the targets approved by the firms in 2021 were aligned with the benchmark of holding global temperature rises to 1.5ºC above pre-industrial times.

• Between 2015-2020, the majority of companies with 1.5°C targets cut emissions twice as fast as required.

A report today urged caution over oil company targets.

The think tank Carbon Tracker said that oil and gas firms base their emissions goals on either selling pollution-causing assets or controversial technologies.

Carbon offsetting can include trees being planted to compensate for industrial emissions.

Carbon tracker says investors should ask if targets are credible.

The author, Mike Coffin, said that mission technologies pose a huge risk to investors and the climate because most, such as CCS, are at an early stage of development and solutions involving tree-planting require vast areas of land.

It is not clear whether the costs will be technically feasible or economically viable.

The firms are ranked in the report. It says that.

• Eni has the strongest policy, pledging a 35% cut in emissions by 2030 from the production and use of its products. But its plans involve CCS and nature-based solutions such as tree planting.

• BP ranks fourth but its position is expected to improve once it formally ends its Rosneft gas shareholding. It says CCS will be a "lever" for emissions reductions.

• Shell ranks fifth, pledging only to reduce the carbon intensity of its operations and the products it sells.

• Nine North American companies all have weaker policies than Europeans and only commit to reducing emissions intensity - that's a measure of carbon emissions per dollar earned.

• ExxonMobil has the weakest policy, the report says. It adopted a net zero target last year but has not said how it will get there.

The oil giant said that it has long acknowledged the reality and risks of climate change, and has devoted significant resources to addressing those risks.

We want to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions for assets by the year 2050. As part of that, we are developing detailed emission-reduction roadmaps for major facilities and assets.

According to a report from the Met Office, new global record temperatures are expected in the next few years.