Key facts
- ExxonMobil scientists expressed doubts about the company's climate solution claims, according to newly released court documents.
- Internal memos and deposition excerpts suggest Exxon's public statements on biofuels and carbon capture were misleading.
- A scientist testified that a 2018 press release about algae biofuel production targets was "patently false."
- Exxon's carbon capture technology was largely restricted to gas processing plants, not the type promoted for power plants.
- The company's advertising campaigns for climate solutions were labeled "All-Around Winners" in internal presentations.
- Exxon aimed to convince the public of its commitment to solving climate change through its advertising.
Internal documents from a lawsuit filed by Massachusetts against ExxonMobil reveal that the company's own scientists harbored doubts about the feasibility of its climate solutions, including biofuels and carbon capture technology, even as the company publicly promoted them. The documents, spanning from the 1980s to the 2010s, provide new details on Exxon's internal deliberations.
One memo from 1988 by Frank Sprow of Exxon's corporate research department warned that "substantial negative impacts on Exxon could occur" if a global consensus emerged on mitigating greenhouse gas effects. This warning came just weeks before the United Nations established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The lawsuit, filed in 2019, alleges that Exxon deceived consumers and investors by creating the impression it was taking action to limit warming, when these efforts were primarily for public relations. The state is seeking fines and an injunction against Exxon's alleged deceptive practices.
Regarding biofuels, an Exxon scientist testified that a 2018 press release claiming the company anticipated producing "10,000 barrels of algae biofuel per day could be produced by 2025" was misleading and "patently false." The scientist stated the target was "completely impossible to achieve" and that a research development on algae, touted as a breakthrough, was "a dead end."
For carbon capture and storage, a 2014 presentation noted challenges to commercial scale, including the need for "massive investment" and high costs. Three years later, a different Exxon scientist expressed he was "not a big fan" of the company's claim to be a leader in carbon capture, noting that its operations were largely restricted to gas processing plants, not the type promoted for power plants.
Internal presentations from 2017 labeled advertisements for algae and carbon capture as "All-Around Winners," and a 2021 presentation for an advertising campaign stated its objective was to get people to "believe ExxonMobil is committed to helping solve climate change."