Congressional Democrats claim Big Oil has lied about natural gas

Following three years of investigation, Senate and House Democrats published a report this week detailing allegations that large oil companies have deceived the public about the negative climate effects of natural gas.

The report centers around internal conversations between 2015-2020 that were obtained from major oil companies and organizations – including BP, Chevron, Exxon, and Shell – via subpoena.

• Democratic lawmakers allege these communications are proof that big oil companies have tried to portray natural gas as a climate-friendly fuel to bridge the gap between coal and renewable energy, while also "internally acknowledging that there is significant scientific evidence that the lifecycle emissions from gas are as bad as coal" due to the presence of methane leaks.

By the numbers: Natural gas, aka methane gas, produces fewer carbon emissions when burned for energy compared to coal – but it’s prone to consistent leaks across nearly every stage of production. The EPA estimates that about 6.5 million metric tons of methane leak from America’s oil and gas supply chain each year, or roughly 1% of total natural gas production.

• Previous research indicated those methane leaks had a negligible environmental impact compared to the emissions saved by switching away from coal.
• But several new studies published within the past two years suggest that US methane emissions are ~70% higher than government figures, and that it takes as little as 0.2% overall leakage for natural gas to become as harmful to the environment as coal.

On the flip side: Several oil companies named in the report pushed back against its characterizations, rejecting claims that they misled the public. Some Republican lawmakers and oil officials also noted that fossil fuels like natural gas are currently an irreplaceable part of the US economy, since they deliver huge amounts of relatively cheap and concentrated energy that renewable sources can’t yet replicate at scale.

👀 Looking ahead… In a Senate hearing yesterday regarding the big oil report, Democratic lawmakers said they would push for new legislation aimed at addressing oil companies’ actions.