This firm made more than BP and Shell combined
2022 saw the scale of the climate crisis laid bare – with devastating floods sweeping across Pakistan and the UK experiencing its hottest ever temperatures. Alongside this, sky-rocketing energy bills triggered the worst cost of living crisis for a generation.
But while people and the planet have been paying the cost, fossil fuel companies have been laughing all the way to the bank. Today, the Norwegian oil and gas giant Equinor announced record-breaking profits of £62bn in 2022. It is the third fossil fuel giant to confirm its staggering profits in recent days. Shell reported record profits of £32.2bn in 2022. Similarly, BP broke records with its £23bn in profit.
Even with Shell and BP breaking records, Equinor made more profit than the two firms combined.
The news has been met with widespread outrage.
Green Party MP Caroline Lucas highlighted that against the backdrop of a climate emergency and a cost of living crisis, the UK government is handing tax giveaways to fossil fuel firms. She tweeted, “Oil giant Equinor has today recorded profits of £62 billion for 2022. Yet rather than properly taxing their North Sea drilling, Govt is handing them a gas giveaway of billions in tax relief to invest in more climate-wrecking oil & gas. So much for the new ‘Department of Net Zero’”.
Climate campaign groups have also expressed similar sentiments. The Stop Rosebank campaign is seeking to prevent fossil fuel extraction in the Rosebank oil and gas field west of Shetland – the biggest undeveloped field in the North Sea. Equinor has a 40% stake in Rosebank.
The campaign group tweeted, “While raking in obscene wealth, Equinor & partners are set to receive more than £500 million in tax breaks for developing Rosebank
“Instead of supporting people struggling to heat their homes, the UK is actually subsidising new oil & gas fields. Equinor is making more profit than they ever have AND we’re giving them tax breaks. @RishiSunak must get a grip, stop subsidising new oil fields and #StopRosebank.”
Chris Jarvis is head of strategy and development at Left Foot Forward
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