Oil, Gas and the Climate

The document argues that current oil and gas expansion plans are incompatible with Paris Agreement goals, as emissions from existing fields alone would likely exceed the 1.5°C limit. It highlights a projected USD 1.4 trillion investment in new extraction between 2020 and 2024, primarily in North America, and calls for a managed phase-out of fossil fuels supported by government bans on new licenses and a shift toward renewable energy.

• Emissions from currently operating oil and gas fields globally are sufficient to push global warming beyond 1.5°C, even if coal use were eliminated immediately and cement emissions were significantly reduced.
• Between 2020 and 2024, the oil and gas industry is projected to invest USD 1.4 trillion in new extraction projects, with a primary focus on offshore and shale resources.
• North America is the primary driver of near-term expansion, accounting for 85% of new supply between 2020 and 2024; U.S. expansion alone is described as making a global safe phase-out by 2050 virtually impossible.
• Every major International Oil Company (IOC) has approved new projects that do not comply with the Paris Agreement, and 25 companies are responsible for nearly half of the production to 2050 resulting from expansion in the next five years.
• The document rejects reliance on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and Bioenergy with CCS (BECCS) as viable solutions, citing that large-scale carbon dioxide removal is unproven and BECCS would require land equivalent to nearly half of the world's crop-growing area.
• A managed phase-out of production is presented as feasible, noting that stopping new project approvals would allow global extraction to fall by 13% in five years and over 30% by 2030.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2019). Oil, Gas and the Climate. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/oilGasClimateDec2019.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Oil, Gas and the Climate. 2019. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/oilGasClimateDec2019.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Oil, Gas and the Climate |date=December 2019 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/oilGasClimateDec2019.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2019oil, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Oil, Gas and the Climate}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2019}, month = dec, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/oilGasClimateDec2019.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }