Shell is calling for global warming sceptics to get off the fence and accept that action needs to be taken "before it is too late".

The Guardian reports that Shell Chairman, Sir Phillip Watts, will today be in Bush and ExxonMobil's back yard of Houston, Texas, where he will say "we can't wait to answer all questions [on global warming] beyond reasonable doubt", adding "there is compelling evidence that climate change is a threat".

Full article

Terry Macalister
The Guardian
Wednesday March 12, 2003

Shell chairman Sir Philip Watts risks stirring up a controversy in America today when he calls for global warming sceptics to get off the fence and accept that action needs to be taken "before it is too late".

At a presentation in Houston, the back yard of ExxonMobil, one of the most vocal antagonists to the Kyoto climate change treaty, the British oilman will say "we can't wait to answer all questions [on global warming] beyond reasonable doubt", adding "there is compelling evidence that climate change is a threat".

Sir Philip expresses deep concern about the growing gulf between Europe and America over climate change and other issues - most notably Iraq. His purpose, he says, is not to create further discord but to argue for both sides to work together to remove what he describes as "the lingering animosity".

Shell and BP have been keen over the past couple of years to be seen as progressive on green issues while ExxonMobil has been labelled a fossil fuel dinosaur by environmentalists.

President Bush refused to sign the Kyoto protocol on global warming and Texas - based ExxonMobil has been a significant cheerleader for this position - although it, too, has been researching renewable technologies.

Sir Philip's speech at the opening of a new Shell Center for Sustainability at Rice University in Houston shows the group's determination to be seen as a moderniser.
"We know that greenhouse gas emissions from human activities ... largely burning fossil fuels ... bring about long-lasting atmospheric changes likely to affect climate. And our world does appear to be warming.

"There are huge uncertain ties about the risks and the impact. Further research is essential. But we can't wait to answer all questions beyond reasonable doubt. There will always be uncertainty which we need to cope with."

Shell has "seen and heard enough" to believe there is a problem related to the burning of fossil fuels. Because of this "we stand with those who are prepared to take action to solve that problem ... now ... before it is too late ... and we believe that businesses, like Shell, can help to bridge differences that divide the US and Europe on this issue".

Shell has been pushing ahead with its own investments in wind, solar and other renewable fuel sources but still believes that hydrocarbons will not become scarce at least until 2025 - and probably quite long after that.

And Sir Philip argues that "sustained expansion of renewable energy" will only start after developments in energy storage around the same period of 2025.

It will be only by the middle of this century that renewables will take a serious grip on energy supply, possibly providing a third of the world's needs by 2050. Sir Philip argues there is no quick fix, with many hurdles to overcome before renewables can offer affordable mass energy.

"Flying over for this speech, I had the distinct impression that the Atlantic is getting wider. Today the focus of that rift is on Iraq. But differences over environmental issues have hardened attitudes," Sir Philip argues.

"With a $30bn footprint in the United States and a similar presence in Europe, we have a vested interest in the best possible relations on both sides of the Atlantic," he adds.

Copyright The Guardian 2003.
Shell speech

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