“I’m hearing more leaders talk about decarbonization and energy security together under the joint banner of what you might call ‘energy pragmatism.’ Last year ... I spent a lot of time talking to the people who are responsible for powering homes and businesses, everybody from prime ministers to energy grid operators. The message I heard was completely opposite to what you often hear from activists on the far left and right, who say that countries have to choose between renewables and oil and gas. These leaders believe that the world still needs both. They were far more pragmatic about energy than dogmatic. Even the most climate conscious among them saw that their long-term path to decarbonization will include hydrocarbons, albeit it less of them, for some time to come.”

“Or look at Texas. They face a similar energy challenge – not because of Russia but because of the economy. The state is one of the fastest growing in the U.S., and the additional demand for power is stretching ERCOT, Texas’ energy grid, to the limit.

Today, Texas runs on 28% renewable energy – 6% more than the U.S. as a whole. But without an additional 10 gigawatts of dispatchable power, which might need to come partially from natural gas, the state could continue to suffer devastating brownouts. In February, BlackRock helped convene a summit of investors and policymakers in Houston to help find a solution.”

“The energy market isn’t divided the way some people think, with a hard split between oil & gas producers on one side and new clean power and climate tech firms on the other. Many companies, like Occidental, do both, which is a major reason BlackRock has never supported divesting from traditional energy firms. They’re pioneers of decarbonization, too... We invest in these energy companies for one simple reason: It’s our clients’ money. If they want to invest in hydrocarbons, we give them every opportunity to do it – the same way we invest roughly $138 billion in energy transition strategies for our clients. That’s part of being an asset manager. We follow our clients’ mandates.”

#oil #gas #naturalgas #energy #energycrisis #money #investments #BlackRock #decarbonization #renewableenergy #ESG #Western #deepstate #fail #blameRussia

Azerbaijan president lauds fossil fuels, knifes Western ‘hypocrisy’ in COP29 opener https://www.politico.eu/article/azerbaijan-baku-president-ilham-aliyev-fossil-fuel-western-hypocrisy-cop-29-opener/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication #EnergyandClimateUK #EnergyandClimate #Sustainability #Fossilfuels #Exports #COP29 #Media #NGOs #Gas #Oil

Azerbaijan’s 🇦🇿 state #oil & #gas company is planning to increase new production of #FossilFuels at the same time as Baku pushes other countries for climate action as host of the UN #COP29 summit starting this week, new analysis shows https://buff.ly/3YM10Ls

The European Parliament’s environment committee wants the EU 🇪🇺 to push for more major economies & polluters to contribute to a global climate adaptation fund at the #COP29 summit next month, but showed little bite when it comes to exiting #oil & #gas https://buff.ly/4eUK0th

Extended write up of our latest report: 'Petrostates of Decline' in FT Energy Source, explaining how the #EnergyTransition & declining #oil & #gas revenues 📉 will hit vulnerable #petrostate economies https://www.ft.com/content/4b1c8ecc-c4be-4194-8d08-cfa856001b7b #COP28

Woodside faces Indigenous legal challenge to seismic blasting at WA gas site https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/aug/18/woodside-faces-indigenous-legal-challenge-to-seismic-blasting-at-wa-gas-site Traditional owner alleges company failed to adequately consult on effect of Scarborough project blasting on sea country. #auslaw #auspol #IndigenousIP #UNDRIP #gas

One thing we know for sure: building and widening highways always succeeds in helping sell more cars, gas and suburban sprawl; burning more public budgets; and increasing GHG emissions. So if those are your goals, it’s the perfect thing to do.

Just don’t expect it to reduce traffic.

Pic/cartoon: André Philippe Côté

#climatechange #Nature #climate #development #gasemissions #cars #car #planet #biodiversity #people #Science #study #photo #ClimateEmergency #climatejustice #Photography #gas #oil