In a recently released report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has emphasized that the oil and gas industry must make a "pivotal" decision: either contribute to the acceleration of the climate crisis or become part of the solution. The IEA's warning comes ahead of the United Nations' COP28 climate summit, which is set to begin next week.

The report highlights that the oil and gas industry currently accounts for just 1% of global investments in clean energy. Meanwhile, it continues to release large amounts of planet-heating gases, including the highly potent methane, which is roughly 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in the short term.

To limit global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, both urgent and drastic action is necessary, according to the IEA. The agency highlights two major measures that the industry needs to adopt in order to play its role in achieving this target.

The first measure involves reducing pollution generated by the industry's own operations, including extracting oil and gas, fuel processing, and delivery to consumers. These activities alone account for nearly 15% of global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions. The agency stresses that reducing these emissions, including methane, can be achieved relatively easily and cost-effectively.

The IEA report sets a target for cutting this pollution by more than 60% from current levels by 2030.

The second measure recommended by the agency is a significant increase in renewable energy investments by oil and gas companies. Currently, these companies contribute only around 2.5% of their total capital spending towards clean energy projects. The IEA suggests that this share should be amplified to 50% by 2030 for the industry to make a meaningful impact on limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

This massive increase in renewable energy investments would require a fundamental shift in how oil and gas firms allocate their capital. Given that the industry generated approximately $17 trillion in revenue between 2018 and 2022, the report reveals that only a fraction was invested in clean energy projects, with the majority focused on developing and operating oil and gas assets.

Despite the oil and gas industry's efforts in carbon capture technologies, the IEA highlights that it is not a sufficient solution to address the climate crisis. The agency states that the current trajectory of oil and gas production trends, along with reliance on carbon capture, is a "pure fantasy" when it comes to achieving the necessary emissions reductions.

The IEA report emphasizes the immense challenge of limiting the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, which would require capturing an inconceivable 32 billion metric tons of carbon by 2050. The energy demand for this process would exceed the current global annual electricity consumption.

In response to the report, Kaisa Kosonen, policy coordinator at Greenpeace International, stated that relying on industry self-regulation risks catastrophe. Kosonen urges governments to use the upcoming climate summit as an opportunity to collectively agree on a swift and fair transition away from fossil fuels.

The oil and gas industry now faces a critical moment of truth at the COP28 summit in Dubai, where the stakes of the worsening climate crisis demand that business-as-usual practices be left behind in favor of socially and environmentally responsible actions.