Carbon Emissions Reduction

Material Topic: Carbon Emissions Reduction

Supporting the goals of the Paris Agreement by reducing the carbon footprint of our operations, for example by improving energy efficiency and reducing the venting and routine flaring of gas.

Key GRIs

• GRI 302: Energy 2016
• GRI 305: Emissions 2016

NaDiVeG

• Environmental concerns

Most Relevant SDGs

The Carbon Emissions Reduction material topic focuses on reducing the GHG emissions of our operations (Scopes 1 and 2) through targeted efforts such as improving energy efficiency, increased use of renewable electricity, modernizing our equipment and processes, and reducing venting and flaring of gas. These efforts are integral to meeting our goal of becoming carbon neutral in our operations by 2050, which is also incorporated into our HSSE Policy. As part of our Strategy 2030, we have set specific interim targets for the short (2025), medium (2030), and long term (2040) on the path to meeting our 2050 goals.

The OMV Group uses 2019 as its base year for all three scopes of emissions and for our 2030, 2040, and 2050 targets because 2019 was the last full year before the COVID-19 pandemic and the majority of the OMV Group’s assets were operating for the whole of 2019.

Targets 2025

• Reduce carbon intensity of operations¹ CO₂ equivalent emissions produced to generate a certain business output using the following business-specific metrics – in the E&P assets within OMV Energy: t CO₂ equivalent/toe produced; refineries: t CO₂ equivalent/t throughput (crude and semi-finished products without blended volumes); power: t CO₂ equivalent/MWh produced – consolidated into an OMV Group Carbon Intensity Index, based on weighted average of the business segments’ carbon intensity (Scope 1) ≥30% vs. 2010
• Achieve at least 1 mn t of CO₂ reductions in 2020–2025 from operated assets

Target 2030

• Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by ≥30% vs. 2019

Target 2040

• Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by ≥60% vs. 2019

Status 2023

• Carbon intensity of operations reduced by 20% vs. 2010
• 0.70 mn t of CO₂e reduced through concrete emissions reduction initiatives and divestments vs. 2020
• Scope 1 and 2 emissions reduced by 25% vs. 2019

Most relevant SDGs

SDG targets:
7.2 By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix
7.3 By 2030, double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency
13.1 Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries

Effective carbon and energy management helps reduce costs and liabilities. The OMV Group’s comprehensive approach to managing GHG emissions encompasses GHG and energy accounting and reporting, inventory management, audits, assessment plans, and training for employees. The Group Sustainability team is also audited by OMV’s internal auditing team on the completeness, correctness, reporting processes and method­ologies, and quality assurance processes of our GHG accounting to confirm that the OMV Group reports Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions in a complete and correct manner, that the accounting methodology complies with international standards, and that the reporting process is adequate. The last internal audit was conducted in 2020.

The Group Sustainability team continues to conduct on-site audits of GHG accounting to verify and improve transparency. For instance, in 2023 the team audited asset Valahia in OMV Petrom, which included a detailed assessment of the process of collecting data, the process of managing the data (measurement, estimations, assumptions, calculations, forecasts, consolidation, etc.), and the process of internal and external data communications. The audit confirmed the good practices already in place and highlighted some potential areas for improvement. For all findings and non-conformities, respective action plans are being defined and tracked for close-out in OMV’s HSSE reporting tool.

Governance

Ultimate responsibility for reducing carbon emissions lies with OMV’s Executive Board. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is responsible for the overall management and coordination and is therefore also responsible for overseeing climate-related issues. OMV Executive Board members meet regularly (at least quarterly) to discuss current and upcoming environmental, climate, and energy-related policies and regulations, related developments in the fuels and gas market, the financial implications of carbon emissions trading obligations, the status of innovation project implementation, and progress on achieving climate targets. The Executive Board’s remuneration is linked to the achievement of our GHG emissions reduction targets (for more information, see Sustainability Governance).

OMV’s Supervisory Board also oversees the carbon emissions reduction topic. The Sustainability & Transformation Committee was formed in 2021 to support the Company’s Supervisory Board in reviewing and monitoring OMV’s sustainability strategy, ESG-related standards, performance, and processes, and specifically, the Group’s performance in HSSE (Health, Safety, Security, Environment) and climate change. For example, one of their responsibilities is to review and evaluate the progress we are making toward OMV’s objectives in relation to our carbon footprint, climate change, and the energy transition.

At Group level, responsibility for GHG accounting and management, sustainability reporting, and ESG governance lies with the Group Sustainability team in Investor Relations & Sustainability, an area overseen by the CFO. OMV’s Group Sustainability department is responsible for generating OMV’s GHG inventory based on international standards and best practice. This ensures a consistent approach across the Group.

The main tasks of the team are:

• to define, implement, and manage OMV’s GHG Management Framework, including the OMV Group’s Climate Targets
• to monitor, calculate, and report OMV’s GHG emissions (Scopes 1–3), and
• to define OMV’s GHG accounting and reporting protocols and tools.

The team coordinates activities throughout the business, providing guidance to stakeholder groups such as subsidiaries, business units, and assets on GHG and energy-related topics. To ensure consistency across the Group, there are also dedicated teams in OMV Petrom and Borealis. Tailored voluntary training on GHG accounting, monitoring and management, sustainability, and climate change is developed by the experts in the Group Sustainability team and offered to interested employees Group-wide.

In OMV’s Capital Allocation Framework, a project category called “Sustainability Projects” allows certain projects to meet different economic return requirements. These projects are assessed and scored according to a strategic climate scoring methodology for Group-wide investment projects. This enables the impact of investments on OMV’s decarbonization strategy to be considered. Alongside other strategic scoring aspects, this allows for holistic portfolio optimization across the OMV Group to support the achievement of our GHG reduction targets (for more information, see Sustainability Governance).

The Group-wide GHG Management Framework is an OMV Group regulation that defines how to measure, report, and manage GHG emissions and contains the definitions, boundaries, and rules for the OMV Group’s strategic GHG reduction targets and “net zero by 2050” ambition. The regulation also includes requirements for Scope 1 E&P methane emissions accounting, which will align with the Oil & Gas Methane Partnership 2.0 (OGMP 2.0) Framework as a minimum and require source-level measurement of methane emissions (OGMP 2.0 level 4) operated by the Energy division by 2026. According to OGMP 2.0, Level 4 refers to the source level quantification of methane emissions using specific emissions factors established through direct measurements, sampling, and/or detailed engineering calculations.