BP: Burning Planet

'One way out of a reputational fix……is a sponsorship blitz'

• Fossil fuel-induced climate chaos hit Europe in August 2003, killing tens of thousands of mostly older people in record-breaking temperatures. 150,000 may have died worldwide.
• Beyond Petroleum? 'BP replaces 2008 production by 121% & aims to grow annual output through to 2020'; (BP Press Release March 2009)
• ‘BP profits soar 148%’, Guardian, 28.10.08. ‘Oil giant BP today beat analysts' forecasts as its reported a 148% surge in third-quarter profits to top $10bn (£6.5bn), boosted by record oil prices.’
• ‘BP and Shell have discussed with the government the prospect of claiming a stake in Iraq's oil reserves in the aftermath of war.’ Financial Times, 11.3.03.
• In 2007, BP bought 50% of the Sunrise oil tar sands field in Canada. Tar sands are most polluting of all the fossil fuels. ‘Fund managers attack BP over tar sands plan’, Times, 18.4.08 www.tarsandswatch.org
• ‘Exposed: BP, its pipeline, and an environmental time-bomb’, Independent (26.6.04) on BP’s US-inspired and protected Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil & gas pipelines, which will produce over 150m tonnes of CO2 each year for 40 years, causing untold damage to the world’s climate; baku.org.uk
• ‘BP slated for 'systemic lapses', FT, 18.8.05; 15 workers were killed and 500 injured in an explosion at BP’s Texas City refinery on March 23rd 2005.
• ‘BP doubles corporate ad budget in $150m bid for greener image’, Times, 28.12.05; BP invests 2.6% of its annual budget in solar & other renewable energy sources, much less than it ploughs into advertising and PR like its sponsorship of the Olympics, Tate, NPG, NHM etc.
• BP Solar announced the cutting of 620 jobs in April 2009, in an attempt to cut costs by 25% by the end of 2010. It expects to double manufacturing and sales this year compared with 2008.
• ‘Oil gushes into Arctic Ocean from BP pipeline’, 265,000 gallons, to be more exact. Independent, 21.3.06
• Community-controlled, post-capitalist renewable energy is already a reality, eg. escanda.org

SHELL: (SOME OF) THE EVIDENCE

Climate Change - Shell’s role in one of the biggest threats to biodiversity

As one of the world’s major oil companies, Shell has a significant role in causing - and therefore responsibility for - man-made climate change. Although Shell has gained high profile publicity for its statements on climate change and lobbying of Tony Blair for tougher action on climate change, the company’s own figures tell a different story. Indeed, Shell is explicit about how much fossil fuel it extracts and is in fact aggressively pursuing a policy of increasing the rate of extraction year on year:

In 2005, Shell produced 3.518 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day. Production is expected to grow and reach 3.8-4.0 million boe per day by 2009, which is an increase of between 8 and 13%.
Earnings in Shell’s exploration and production division - the division that explores for and extracts oil - increased by 45% in 2006.

Also in 2006, Shell added 160,000 square kilometres of exploration acreage to its portfolio, with new exploration licences in 14 countries and says it “will pursue an exploration programme to add more new acreage”.

Meanwhile, Shell’s investment in renewable energy amounted to $1 billion between 2001 and 2006. This may sound impressive, but an investment of $15.6 billion in production and refining in 2005 alone puts it into context.

Read more......

The way the UK government subsidises climate chaos

An overview of BPs involvement in the arts and how this relates to 'greenwash'

New York Times article from BP adman John Kenney, 14th August 2006.

Report from Art Not Oil 2004 ( the first one! ) and the visit ( and street party ) to the National Portrait Gallery.

Art Not Oil revisits the National Portrait Gallery in 2006, being concerned that they might be more interested in money and status than the climate. Read the report.