OMV, the integrated, international oil and gas company based in Vienna, started implementing its first carbon strategy more than ten years ago. During this period, projects to cut greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) delivered a reduction of 1.8 mn t CO2 equivalent. The 2025 carbon intensity targets for OMV’s operations (-19%) and its product portfolio (-4%) were already achieved in 2019.
Having committed to the Paris Agreement and EU climate targets, OMV has now set new and more ambitious climate targets. OMV will reach net-zero GHG emissions of its operations (scope 1 and 2) by 2050 or sooner. The net-zero operations will be achieved through energy efficiency measures, new technologies such as carbon capture, carbon storage/utilization and hydrogen, as well as renewable electricity (like the photovoltaic plant in Austria) and portfolio optimization measures.
On the way to the long-term target, OMV is setting concrete intermediate goals. By 2025 a reduction of at least 60% for Upstream and at least 20% for Refining will be achieved (both compared to 2010). This means the carbon intensity groupwide (excluding Borealis) is to be reduced by at least 30%. Between 2020 and 2025, OMV intends to reduce its CO2-equivalent emissions in operated assets by at least 1 mn t.
In the total product portfolio, a share of at least 60% of low/zero-carbon products (including gas) is envisaged by 2025. The new target will result in a reduction in the carbon intensity of OMV’s product portfolio (scope 3) by at least 6% versus 2010, in comparison with the previous target of 4%.
OMV CEO Rainer Seele: “In our sustainability strategy, we are now stating a long-term ambition of net-zero emissions for the first time. On the one hand, this will require short-term optimizations. In the long run, however, we will also need to draw on new technologies such as carbon capture and utilization or storage. Implementing these sustainable technologies in a way that is economically feasible will require an appropriate regulatory environment.”
OMV will work together with stakeholders to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of its product portfolio long-term. OMV will increase the share of gas in its portfolio to achieve an immediate CO2 reduction. OMV’s equity oil will be used for petrochemical and chemical production (non-energy products) and applying circular plastics economy solutions. Furthermore, OMV will increase the share of alternative feedstocks (such as plastic waste, biofuel/waste, e-fuel/CO2, biogas, synthetic gas) for its products and will focus on hydrogen technologies to identify large-scale commercial applications for the future. Beside these measures, more research and development in some technologies is still needed to bring them to commercial scale (e.g. CCU).
With the Borealis transaction in 2020, OMV is transforming its product portfolio towards a higher share of non-energy products and repositioning itself for a low-carbon future. In addition, the OMV Group and Borealis aim to be a leader in the circular plastics economy (chemical and mechanical recycling). All in all, OMV and Borealis will invest EUR 1 bn in innovative solutions by 2025.
About OMV Aktiengesellschaft
OMV produces and markets oil and gas, innovative energy and high-end petrochemical solutions – in a responsible way. With Group sales of EUR 23 bn and a workforce of around 20,000 employees in 2019, OMV Aktiengesellschaft is one of Austria’s largest listed industrial companies. In Upstream, OMV has a strong base in Central and Eastern Europe as well as a balanced international portfolio, with Middle East & Africa, the North Sea, Russia, and Asia-Pacific as further core regions.
Daily average production was 487,000 boe/d in 2019. In Downstream, OMV operates three refineries in Europe and owns a 15% share in ADNOC Refining and Trading JV, with a total annual processing capacity of 24.9 mn tons. Furthermore, OMV has a 36% participation in Borealis, one of the world’s leading producers of polyolefins.
he Company operates about 2,100 filling stations in ten European countries. OMV runs gas storage facilities in Austria and Germany; its subsidiary Gas Connect Austria GmbH operates a gas pipeline network in Austria. In 2019, gas sales volumes amounted to around 137 TWh. Sustainability is an integral part of OMV’s corporate strategy.
OMV supports the transition to a lower-carbon economy and has set measurable targets for reducing carbon intensity and introducing new energy and petrochemical solutions.