ESG Panel to Oil and Gas: Prioritize Governance or Risk Failure

A panel examining how oil and gas companies should address ESG goals zeroed in on the governance component at the recent NAPE Business Conference.

Their assertion: the collection of massive volumes of tangible ESG data is nowhere near as important as the ability to use it to a company’s advantage. Indeed, failing to fix an approach to management could put an oil and gas company’s survival at risk.

“I think a lot of folks have been measuring a lot of stuff and collecting a lot of data, but they’ve actually not been using that data to really manage their business,” said David de Roode, executive vice president and Lockton partner with Lockton Cos., the world’s largest privately held insurance brokerage firm. It’s a matter of accountability and responsibility, he said, adding that he considers the problem to be prevalent across all industry verticals.