PARIS (AP) – French oil and gas company Total said it decided to withdraw from the American Petroleum Institute energy association because it disagreed with climate-related policies.
Total said in a statement on Friday that it would not renew its membership for 2021, after an analysis of API’s position on climate issues that showed “certain divergences”.
The company notably mentions “API support during the recent elections for candidates who argued against the participation of the United States” in the 2015 Paris Agreement to curb climate change. Total also pointed out divergent views on the regulation of methane emissions, subsidies for electric vehicles and the principle of carbon pricing, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Total says it is working to provide cleaner energy and its CEO, Patrick Pouyanné, said the group wants to ensure that “the industry associations of which we are members adopt positions and messages aligned with those of the group in the fight against climate change.”
The API said in a statement on Friday that “we believe that the world’s environmental and energy challenges are big enough that many different approaches are needed to resolve them and we benefit from a diversity of views”. With more than 600 members, API represents all segments of the oil and natural gas industry in the USA
The API added that “it does not support the energy subsidy because it distorts the market and is ultimately harmful to consumers”.
Peter Frumhoff, director of science and politics at the United States-based Union of Concerned Scientists, said Total’s decision to leave the group was significant.
“It’s a big deal for a big tanker to take a position, basically, leaving the big trading association here in the United States,” he told the Associated Press.
Frumhoff said the change came just days after API President Mike Summers made a speech in which he said the group would fight against methane emissions regulation, restrictions on drilling on public land and support for vehicle charging infrastructure. electrical.
He added that Total’s decision put pressure on other oil companies BP and Shell, which said they aimed to combat greenhouse gas emissions, “to put their political power where it is and do the same.”
President-elect Joe Biden, who said he wanted to focus on fighting climate change, promised that the United States would return to the Paris agreement on the first day of his presidency.
The API emphasized that earlier this week, Summers said the association was ready to work “with the Biden administration on policy solutions” to enable further reductions in methane emissions, including exploring “the possibility of further regulation in this space”.
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Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed to this report.