Energy giant BP is scaling back its climate goals just as profits soared to new heights.
On Tuesday, the British company said it would reduce carbon emissions in oil and gas production by 20 to 30 percent by 2030, compared to a 2019 baseline. It had previously aimed for a 35 to 40 percent.
The lowered target was tucked into the company's quarterly earnings report Tuesday, in which it recorded 2022 profits of $27.7 billion - more than twice that of 2021. Oil prices soared last year after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, upending energy markets.
It pledged to target "short-cycle fast-payback opportunities" in oil and gas with $8 billion in spending, alongside another $8 billion for "energy transition growth engines."
It also announced plans to send more money to investors, increasing its dividend by 10 percent and adding $2.75 billion in stock buybacks.
"It's clearer than ever after the past three years that the world wants and needs energy that is secure and affordable as well as lower carbon - all three together, what's known as the energy trilemma," BP chief executive Bernard Looney said in a news release. "To tackle that, action is needed to accelerate the transition. And - at the same time - action is needed to make sure that the transition is orderly, so that affordable energy keeps flowing where it's needed today."
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