Independent producers’ scope three dilemma

Is it enough for pureplay upstream firms to concentrate solely on emissions within their control?

More than 80pc of a barrel of oil’s carbon footprint is scope three emissions. But an independent producer, having sold its share of output from a field, no longer has a say on where that oil goes, into what it is refined and, ultimately, how it is combusted and releases most of its CO₂. There are, in fact, few—if any—barrels these days that remain in a single pair of hands from production, through transportation (including potential shipborne resales), refining and distribution, to retail, begging the question what roles traders, refiners and distributors might have to assume in a future where a matrix for sharing responsibility for scope three emissions must surely emerge. But, at least un