IN a bid to stop climate change due to global warming, top oil firms have finally banded together to develop technologies to lower carbon emissions and increase car engine and fuel efficiency.
The oil firms will create an investment fund to develop technologies to promote renewable energy away from the carbon-emitting fossil fuel that emanate from coal and other oil products.
The oil and gas companies were identified as BP, Eni, Repsol, Saudi Aramco, Royal Dutch Shell, Statoil and Total. The oil firms will now play an active role in the fight against global warming, according to sources.
Representatives of the oil firms will meet in London where they will announce details of the fund on Friday.
The group supports the 2015 Paris Agreement to get rid of the man-made greenhouse gases that was effecting climate change.
The fund also seeks to reduce costs of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, which involves capturing carbon dioxide emissions and re-injecting them into underground caverns.
Major industries all over the world are still dependent on fossil fuel but other countries have already developed renewable energy sources from geothermal, solar panels, wind turbines and hydro electric dams.
Economic progress is often associated with energy consumption increase for undeveloped or even developed countries that still rely on fossil fuel.
The issue on climate change in undeveloped countries is not being given priority often way below security, food, education, health and energy and transport related issues, according to observers.
In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte said he will not honor commitments made under the Paris Climate Pact. He said the Paris Climate Pact seeks to dictate to developing countries and limit economic growth. “You are trying to stifle us.”
The Paris Climate Pact was agreed by 195 countries last December. It aims to limit global warming to below 2C (36F) and strive to keep temperatures at 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.
The deal comes into force when 55 countries covering 55 percent of global emissions have agreed to reduce the carbon emissions.
The Philippines accounts for less than one percent of the world’s emissions.