Santos overhauls emissions, production goals

Moomba

Santos has set ambitious new emissions reduction targets which would see the company achieve net-zero emissions by 2040.

Managing director and chief executive officer Kevin Gallagher said the company is already on track to exceed its exisiting 2025 emission targets and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

As part of its new targets, Santos is aiming to reduce scope one and two absolute emissions by 26-30 per cent on 2020 baseline; actively work with customers to reduce those scopes by 2030; and have net-zero emission by 2040.

“Our focus over the last three years on step change technologies such as carbon capture and storage has enabled a pathway that allows us to go further faster when it comes to emissions reduction,” Gallagher said.

“The world still relies on hydrocarbon fuels for 80 per cent of its primary energy, the same as 45 years ago, so to achieve global emissions reduction goals it is vital that companies like Santos focus on making these fuels cleaner and eventually zero emissions.”

In order to reduce its scope one and two emissions, Santos has installed more than 5.5 megawatts of solar electricity and 4 megawatt hours of battery storage, with its Moomba carbon capture and storage (CCS) project set to be the key to reducing emissions.

“The Moomba CCS project will safely and permanently store 1.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.  That’s the equivalent of taking about 700,000 cars off the road. The project will be the second-largest and one of the lowest-cost projects in the world at our current estimate of around A$30 per tonne,” Gallagher added.

The company also has interests in two nature-based carbon abatement projects that are registered with the Australian Clean Energy regulator under the Emissions Reduction Fund, including a world-leading savanna-burning project in West Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory.

In addition, Santos has bolstered its 2020 production guidance following strong operating performance across the company and a 50 per cent increase in output over the past five years.

The upgraded 2020 production will see the company increase its guidance to 87-89 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe) and lower its production cost guidance to $8-8.50 barrel of oil equivalent (boe).

The company has also confirmed that it has received tolling agreements to transport and process Barossa gas through Darwin LNG, edging the company closer towards a final investment decision (FID) on the project.

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