ExxonMobil
NYSE: XOM16Greenwashing / Harmful0 followersOil & Gas·Spring, TX, USA·Founded 1999·Public
corporate.exxonmobil.comOne of the world's largest publicly traded oil and gas companies, with growing upstream production alongside a comparatively small low-carbon solutions division.
Greenwashing risk: highData confidence: low
Why it's on ClimateTicker
ExxonMobil is one of the world's largest fossil-fuel producers and its core business model — extracting and selling oil and gas — is fundamentally emissions-generating; its 'Low Carbon Solutions' division (CCS, hydrogen, biofuels) is a small fraction of capital allocation and does not offset the company's outsized contribution to global greenhouse-gas emissions. The company markets climate progress through net-zero rhetoric, Scope 1 & 2 pledges, and CCS investments, but has no SBTi-validated targets covering Scope 3, continues to grow upstream production, and has a long documented record of funding climate-denial and lobbying against climate policy. Investors should treat ExxonMobil as a laggard with high greenwashing risk, not a genuine climate solution.
laggardExxonMobil earns revenue primarily from upstream exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, downstream refining and marketing of petroleum products, and chemicals manufacturing; a very small and still-unprofitable Low Carbon Solutions segment pursues carbon capture, hydrogen, and biofuels as future revenue streams.
Commitments & Certifications
CDP Climate: C
Controversy & Greenwashing Watch
highLawsuit to block shareholder climate resolution
In early 2024, ExxonMobil sued activist investor Arjuna Capital to block a shareholder resolution on Scope 3 emissions reductions, even after Arjuna withdrew the proposal, setting a chilling precedent for shareholder climate activism.source ↗
highState Attorney General climate fraud investigations
Multiple state AGs (New York, Massachusetts, Minnesota, others) have filed or are pursuing lawsuits alleging ExxonMobil deceived investors and the public about climate risk and the viability of its business under climate regulation.source ↗
mediumMethane super-emitter events
Satellite-based monitoring (GHGSat, Carbon Mapper) has repeatedly detected large methane releases from ExxonMobil Permian Basin operations inconsistent with the company's self-reported methane intensity figures.source ↗
mediumSEC climate disclosure enforcement scrutiny
ExxonMobil's climate risk disclosures have been flagged by SEC staff and climate-finance analysts as insufficiently quantifying the financial impact of transition risk and physical climate risk on its long-term asset base.source ↗
highContinued heavy lobbying against climate legislation
ExxonMobil has spent tens of millions annually lobbying against carbon taxes, clean energy standards, and methane regulations; a 2021 undercover investigation caught a senior lobbyist admitting the company's public support for a carbon tax was insincere.source ↗
mediumEngine No. 1 board proxy fight over climate strategy
In 2021, activist hedge fund Engine No. 1 won three board seats at ExxonMobil's annual meeting, citing the company's inadequate long-term climate strategy and risk of stranded assets — an extraordinary rebuke by institutional shareholders.source ↗
highExxon Knew — decades of internal climate research suppressed
Investigative reporting and academic research confirmed ExxonMobil's own scientists accurately predicted human-caused climate change from the 1970s onward while the company funded external doubt campaigns and lobbied against climate policy.source ↗
Community Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to share your experience!