BlackRock Inc. CEO Laurence Fink said on Sept. 15 that natural gas would play a key role in the global drive to cut planet-warming carbon emissions and praised the European Union's decision to label as sustainable some investments in using the fuel.
During a recorded conversation with the chairman of Spanish bank BBVA, Fink said it was likely to be impossible to phase out hydrocarbons in the next 20 years.
"The key is going to be gas," he said, describing it as "obviously less pollutive than other forms of hydrocarbons."
Fink's comments were in line with other recent messages from the $8.5 trillion asset manager as it tries to steer a middle path on environmental issues.
The world’s largest fund firm has faced criticism from many sides in the debate on low-carbon fuels, with environmentalists protesting it does too little to press for change at fossil fuel portfolio companies on one side, and Republican U.S. politicians accusing it of boycotting energy stocks on the other.
In the talk, a transcript of which was provided by BBVA, Fink weighed in on a decision by the European Union earlier this year to include gas and nuclear plants in its sustainable investment rulebook, if they meet certain criteria.
"I'm very pleased that the Eurozone finally has said gas is green," Fink said, suggesting the continent's energy crisis stemming from Russia's invasion of Ukraine may have had a bearing on the assessment.
Characterizing the shift away from fossil fuels as a "balancing act," Fink also said energy companies should look to develop relatively new technology that aims to capture, use and store carbon emitted from industry.
"I believe the major energy companies of the world today are going to be the leaders in sequestration of carbon," he said.
Recommended Reading
Tech Over Trial-and-Error: Improving Near-Well Bore Completions
2023-01-27 - Drill2Frac’s FlowFX solution helps fine-tune completion designs by modeling parameters such as the number of perf clusters and length of stages.
E&P Highlights: Jan. 26, 2023
2023-01-26 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines including a production update from Tullow, an update on U.K. offshore opportunities and some contract announcements in the upstream oil and gas industry.
Afentra Aims to Get More Black Gold Out of Brownfields
2023-01-24 - Former Tullow Oil CEO Paul McDade is leading a new company, Afentra, aimed at rejuvenating mature West Africa oil fields.
US Oil Rig Count Falls This Week by Most Since Sept 2021: Baker Hughes
2023-01-20 - The U.S. oil rig count fell 10 to 613, the lowest since November, while gas rigs rose six to 156, in their biggest weekly rise since February, according to Baker Hughes.
UK Oil and Gas Licensing Round Attracts 115 Bids
2023-01-17 - This was the U.K.'s first licensing round for oil and gas exploration since 2019.