Imperial Oil Tells Shareholders to Vote Down ‘Premature’ Net-Zero Emissions Target

Imperial Oil Ltd. is advising investors attending its annual meeting in May to vote against a shareholder resolution that it adopt a corporate wide target to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The Calgary-based fossil, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil, says it is intent on its current goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions intensity by 10% by 2023 relative to 2016 levels, The Canadian Press reports.

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The motion, made by Aequo Shareholder Engagement Services on behalf of Quebec group retirement system Batirente, argues that Imperial’s current 2023 emissions reduction target is a step in the right direction but that it is also important to have a long-term strategy.

In its notice of meeting, however, Imperial recommends voting down the proposal because, although it supports initiatives to control global warming, it is “premature” to set targets before it has a concrete plan for how to reach them.

The company says it has a portfolio of technologies at various stages of commercialization that could be employed, including the use of solvents to produce bitumen from oilsands wells with less energy and using carbon capture and storage to create emission offsets.

Batirente CEO Daniel Simard says all companies, especially those in the [fossil] energy sector, have to align their strategies with the 2015 Paris Agreement and reduce their emissions by 2050.

“Our climate commitment as unveiled in autumn 2020, aims to both alleviate the cause of climate warming, through the reduction of GHG emissions, and mitigate its consequences, by building resilience,” he said in a news release.

“It is important for Batirente to meet its fiduciary responsibility by taking measures to optimally allocate the capital entrusted to us.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 19, 2021.