Managing environmental performance and compliance

Our standards and tools set the bar in our operations as we work to enhance risk management and maximize opportunities to responsibly meet society’s needs.

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We are also committed to complying with all applicable environmental laws and regulations. Even where regulations do not exist, we apply our Project Environmental Standards and other practices, programs, and procedures to guide our work.

Our approach

Protect Tomorrow. Today. is our guiding principle.

We aim to develop, maintain, and operate assets responsibly as we work to meet society’s evolving needs.

We apply our environmental management systems across our operations as we strive for leading environmental performance.

We evaluate potential and actual environmental and socioeconomic risks at each stage of a project, even early stages of planning, to mitigate potential impacts.

Our environmental focus areas

We often work in remote and sensitive places, such as deep water and in areas that include ecosystems with high biodiversity. Wherever we operate, we work to protect the environment and support the social and economic needs of communities – today and for generations to come.

Our environmental focus areas are:

  • Advancing climate solutions
  • Caring for land and biodiversity
  • Conserving water resources
  • Improving air quality
  • Minimizing operational waste

Managing our commitment

Our Environment Policy is part of our Standards of Business Conduct. It details our commitment to continuous efforts to improve environmental performance throughout our operations.

Our Operations Integrity Management System (OIMS) framework meets International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001 environmental management system standards and the requirements of American Chemistry Council Responsible Care®. Our global network of more than 20 lubricant plants is ISO 14001-certified – an indicator of the effectiveness of OIMS.

Excellence in project execution is built on deep insight into the unique traits of the areas where we operate. We use our Environmental Aspects Guide to identify and evaluate environmental and socioeconomic risks and impacts through the life of each site or project. For major capital projects, we typically perform an Environmental, Socioeconomic, and Health Impact Assessment. Among the many environmental aspects covered, we may include water use, air emissions, biodiversity, sound, land use, and others.

Once we have defined the environmental and socioeconomic aspects of each project, we develop plans to avoid, reduce, or address any issues that may arise. We also seek feedback from stakeholders, including local communities.

We offer training on these processes and other environmental and socioeconomic topics to employees as part of our ongoing development efforts. Employees have completed more than 13,000 of these courses since 2022.

International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001
American Chemistry Council Responsible Care®
Environmental Aspects Guide

Global Operations and Sustainability

Our Global Operations and Sustainability (GO&S) organization touches every part of ExxonMobil, making use of our scale, capabilities, and the synergies between our business lines.

Our Global Operations & Sustainability (GO&S) Vice President reports directly to a member of our management committee. This role is responsible for enabling our Protect Tomorrow. Today. guiding principle. This includes:

  • Working with our Corporate Strategic Planning organization and the business lines to develop goals.
  • Integrating goals into our plans and operations.
  • Stewarding sustainability topics with our Chairman and the Management Committee at least once per quarter.

Within GO&S, the Sustainability Director manages our sustainability focus areas. This includes our environmental management system and other key processes. Experts within the team work with others across the company to seek out opportunities for continuous improvement.

Our Project Environmental Standards

Our Project Environmental Standards (PES) are our internally established environmental and socioeconomic standards that outline expectations and requirements for new projects. These standards were first developed for upstream projects, and were established in 2010 for all our business lines. They were harmonized across the company in 2021 and are updated as needed.

PES sets minimum environmental standards, even where laws are lacking. These standards are integrated into management systems like OIMS, enabling consistent application across the company.

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Measuring our performance

Everywhere we work, we strive to deliver leading environmental performance. The standards and practices we apply around the world often go beyond local legal requirements.

The floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels built for our affiliate in Guyana are an important example. The Liza Unity FPSO was the first in the world to be awarded the SUSTAIN-1 notation by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS).

To earn this notation, a vessel must meet certain requirements of the ABS Guide for Sustainability Notations. These criteria reflect Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to asset design, outfitting, and layout, covering aspects such as:

  • Recycling
  • Energy use
  • Coastal and marine ecosystems
  • Human-centered design

Building on Liza Unity’s success, the Prosperity FPSO received the same notation from ABS. Prosperity started up in 2023 with an initial capacity of around 220,000 barrels of oil per day – supporting economic development in the region and helping to meet the world’s demand for energy.

American Bureau of Shipping
ABS Guide for Sustainability Notation

Performance data

Our metrics are informed by the Ipieca, the American Petroleum Institute (API), and the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (IOGP) Sustainability Reporting Guidance for the Oil and Gas Industry (4th edition, 2020, revised February 2023), and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).

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    Sustainability Report Executive Summary