Five aims to get bp to net zero

We have set five aims to get to net zero by 2050 or sooner

Sustainability Report 2023 at a glance

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Sustainability Report 2023 pdf / 11.4 MB

Net Zero Ambition Progress Update 2024 pdf / 7.8 MB

ESG datasheet 2023 pdf / 507.8 KB

We are aiming to be net zero across operations, production and sales. By 2050 or sooner, we aim to get to net zero:

across our entire operations (Scope 1 and 2)
for the carbon in our upstream oil and gas production (Scope 3)
for the carbon intensity of the energy products we sell (average lifecycle carbon intensity).

Our aim 1 is to be net zero across our entire operations on an absolute basis by 2050 or sooner

This aim relates to our Scope 1 (from running the assets within our operational control boundary) and Scope 2 (associated with producing the electricity, heating and cooling that is bought in to run those operations) GHG emissions.

These emissions were around 54.5MtCO₂e in 2019^a. We are targeting a 20% reduction in our aim 1 operational emissions by 2025 and will aim for a 50% reduction by 2030 against our 2019 baseline.

In 2023 we continued our path towards our operational emissions reduction target, although compared with 2022 (31.9MtCO₂e), Scope 1 and 2 emissions remained broadly flat.

Our combined Scope 1 and 2 emissions, covered by aim 1 were 32.1MtCO₂e – a decrease of 41% from our 2019 baseline of 54.5MtCO₂e^b. The total decrease includes 17.9MtCO₂e attributable to divestments and 5.0MtCO₂e in sustainable emission reductions (SERs).

We have already exceeded our 2025 target of 20% emission reductions against our 2019 baseline.

New projects are coming online, adding to the challenge of reducing our operational emissions and continued investment will be needed to meet our 2030 aim. SERs have been a focus for us, allowing us to apply our skills to emission reductions and we intend to maintain that focus.

^a Changed from 54.4MtCO₂e for consistency in rounding.

^b Scope 2 emissions on a market basis.

^c Operational control data comprises 100% of emissions from activities operated by bp, going beyond the Ipieca guidelines by including emissions from certain other activities such as contracted drilling activities.

^d Due to rounding, some totals may not equal the sum of their component parts. This does not affect the underlying values.

^e Scope 2 GHG emissions figure for 2022 updated to reflect use of renewable energy in UK and offshore in 2022.

Our aim 2 is to be net zero on an absolute basis across the carbon in our upstream oil and gas production by 2050 or sooner

This is our Scope 3 aim and is based on bp’s net share of production (around 361MtCO₂ in 2019). It is associated with the CO₂ emissions from the combustion of upstream production of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs). We are targeting a 10-15% reduction by 2025 and will aim for 20-30% by 2030 against our 2019 baseline.

Becoming net zero on an absolute basis across the carbon in our upstream oil and gas production is partly linked to reducing that production. We have stated that we are aiming for a reduction in oil and gas production by around 25% by 2030, compared to 2019^a.

Since 2019 our estimated Scope 3 emissions covered by aim 2 have reduced by 13%, which is around the mid-range of our 2025 target of a 10-15% reduction against our 2019 baseline. Our plans and forward path for emissions covered by aim 2 will take into account growth in underlying production due to major project startups out to 2025, deferred divestments and growth in bpx energy production.

The estimated Scope 3 emissions from the carbon in our upstream oil and gas production were 315MtCO₂ in 2023 – a slight increase from 307MtCO₂ in 2022, mainly associated with an increase in underlying production due to the ramp-up of major projects and higher asset performance.

^a Excluding bp’s share of production in Rosneft. On 27 February 2022, bp announced that it intends to exit its 19.75% shareholding in Rosneft Oil Company (Rosneft). bp ceased equity accounting for Rosneft from this date.

Our aim 3 is to reduce to net zero the carbon intensity of the energy products^a we sell by 2050 or sooner

This aim applies to the average carbon intensity of the energy products we sell. It is estimated on a lifecycle (full value chain) basis from the use, production, and distribution of sold energy products per unit of energy (MJ) delivered.

Progress on our aim 3 is directly linked to our strategy to grow our low carbon businesses and provide products that have lower lifecycle emissions. We anticipate that this change in our sales portfolio will be supported by the continued evolution of the market. We are aiming to increase our capital investment in our transition growth engines, which include low carbon activity.

We expect the implementation of our strategy across our three strategic pillars – resilient hydrocarbons, convenience and mobility, and low carbon energy – to support delivery of our aim 3 up to and beyond 2030.

In 2023 the average carbon intensity of our sold energy products was 77gCO₂e/MJ. This represents a 3%^b decrease from our 2019 baseline, driven by changes in the sold product mix, methodology updates and the impact of portfolio changes such as the full year accounting of sales by EDF Energy Services.

^a Please see the basis of reporting for the list of energy products covered at bp.com/basisofreporting.

^b The percentage change is calculated from the source data instead of the rounded carbon intensity number.

^c The aggregate lifecycle emissions and energy values used in the calculation of the average lifecycle carbon intensity of sold energy products is provided in the bp ESG datasheet 2023.

^d Previously reported aim 3 figures for the period 2019–2022 have been restated to correct misstatements in sales data identified through business reviews and digital improvement projects.

Our aim 4 is to install methane measurement at all our existing major oil and gas processing sites by 2023, ‎publish the data, and then drive a 50% reduction in methane intensity^a of our operations. And we will work to influence our joint ventures to set their own methane intensity targets of 0.2%

We have completed the implementation of our planned methane measurement approach across our upsteam oil and gas assets, with the introduction of software for flare efficiency, predictive emissions monitoring on gas turbines, and additional or updated meters among other measures. This follows more than three years’ work to identify suitable measurement solutions and manage their roll-out across our varied and complex global operations.

We maintained our methane intensity at 0.05% in 2023^b. Methane emissions from upstream operations, used to calculate our intensity, increased by around 10% from 28kt in 2022 to 31kt in 2023.

This increase is primarily from changes in flaring in our Azerbaijan-Georgia-Türkiye region and Tangguh operations. It was offset by methane emissions reductions from delivery of SERs. Marketed gas volumes increased by 4% to 3,332bcf in 2023.

We remain on track to reach zero routine flaring by 2030 in line with our aim under the World Bank’s Zero Routine Flaring Initiative. Our bpx energy operations have achieved zero routine flaring, ahead of our 2025 goal.

^a Methane intensity refers to the amount of methane emissions from bp’s operated upstream oil and gas assets as a percentage of the total gas that goes to market from those operations. Our methodology is aligned with the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative’s (OGCI).

^b Methane intensity is currently calculated using our existing methodology and, while it reflects progress in reducing methane emissions, will not directly correlate with progress towards delivering the 2025 target under aim 4.

Our aim 5 is to increase the proportion of investment we make into our non-oil and gas businesses. Over time, as investment goes up in low and zero carbon, we see it going down in oil and gas

In 2023 transition growth investment was $3.8 billion. This compares to $0.6 billion in 2019 and $4.9 billion in 2022. It represents around 23% of total capital expenditure for the year, which compares to around 3% in 2019 and around 30% in 2022. The change from 2022 reflects lower inorganic investment in our transition growth engines, outweighing an increase in organic investment in them over 2023.

It is not always possible to predict the timing of our capital investments, which means the progress we make on aim 5 can be expected to fluctuate – as it did between 2021 and 2023. Our disciplined approach to capital investment means that we make individual investments when we consider there to be a clear and compelling business case to do so in line with our balanced set of investment criteria.

Five aims to get bp to net zero

We have set five aims to get to net zero by 2050 or sooner