Exxon Mobil is forming a business unit that will focus exclusively on technologies to lower carbon emissions, Report informs, referring to The Wall Street Journal.
The new business, dubbed ‘low carbon solutions,’ would invest $3 billion through 2025 on lower-emission energy technologies, primarily on carbon capture and storage projects, which gather carbon emissions from industrial processes or directly from the air and deposit them underground.
Those investments would represent roughly 3-4 percent of Exxon’s planned annual capital expenditures.
Exxon has a large research-and-development division that has invested in carbon capture for years, and Exxon says it has captured more carbon than any other company. Currently, the only large-scale use for captured carbon is to help produce more fossil fuels by pumping in the gas to squeeze more oil and gas out of the ground.
"With our demonstrated leadership in carbon capture and emissions reduction technologies, Exxon Mobil is committed to meeting the demand for affordable energy while reducing emissions," Exxon Chief Executive Darren Woods said.
Exxon is expected to report a fourth consecutive quarterly loss for the first time in modern history on Feb. 2 after previously disclosing that it would write down as much as $20 billion in assets.
Following the new coronavirus outbreak last year, Exxon discussed a merger with its top US rival, Chevron. The talks were described as preliminary and aren’t currently ongoing.