RIMBAWATCH attended the Climate Finance Summit at Sasana Kijang on July 13. At the event, Petronas, represented by its chief financial officer, spoke on a panel discussing “Lessons from the Net-Zero Journey”.

Petronas argued that carbon capture and storage (CCS) was a way to “produce energy without emissions”. Following this, RimbaWatch posed a question to Petronas, requesting clarity on how many tonnes of CO2 Petronas could store using CCS compared to how many tonnes of CO2 Petronas emits in a year, including its Scope 3 emissions. It must be noted that Scope 3 emissions are the emissions from the use of fuel sold by Petronas and generally represent up to 90% of a fossil company’s emissions. We note the following from Petronas’ response to our question:

Petronas was unable to provide a figure, general estimation, or assurance that demonstrated that Petronas would be able to meaningfully reduce its total emissions, including Scope 3, using CCS.

On its Scope 3 emissions, Petronas stated that it “recognises the importance of accurate measurement and increasing transparency. Scope 3 is not yet in our (net-zero) target because we need to have a proper strategy around Scope 3. To have a proper strategy for Scope 3, we need to be able to measure and account for it accurately in a right manner. That’s the bit that we are working on right now. There are many elements of Scope 3, so what we are doing right now is trying to understand how best to measure and identify Scope 3, and it can’t be done alone.” Petronas highlighted that its partners and vendors needed help to measure their emissions, and only when that is achieved can Petronas “measure it (Scope 3) in a more accurate sense.”

RimbaWatch is confused by Petronas’ statements on Scope 3, which appears to communicate that it is still trying to navigate how to measure Scope 3 emissions accurately. However, in its last integrated report published in June, Petronas did, for the first time, publish its Scope 3 emissions at 307.61 million tonnes CO2e in 2022 (operational control emissions).

RimbaWatch notes that the storage capacity from the only Petronas CCS project currently under construction, the Kasawari, is 3.3 million tonnes of CO2e per annum, which represents only 0.9% of Petronas’ total 2022 emissions.

At the end of the panel, Petronas stated that it is “big on ensuring that we are accountable and credible”. In this spirit, RimbaWatch raises the following questions, which we hope Petronas will be able to clarify:

Referring to Petronas’ scope 3 emissions disclosure, which was published this year, is this disclosure reliable and credible if Petronas is now saying that it has yet to “understand how best to measure and identify scope 3”? Further, can we trust Petronas’ emissions disclosures in general, noting that it has not received independent third-party verification, and that having this verification process is a standard practice by companies disclosing their emissions worldwide?

Can CCS be relied upon as a technology to meaningfully reduce emissions and achieve net zero by 2050 when, at its current capacity, it will only be able to address less than 1% of Petronas’ total emissions? Wouldn’t re-directing the RM4.5 billion invested in the Kasawari project to the expansion of renewable energy capacity create more credible emissions reductions? – July 16, 2023.

* RimbaWatch is an environmental watchdog.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.