Week 24 in Review: Sustainability, branding, environmental excellence, and cricket

Here are some of the top headlines over the past week.

First-ever Aramco report details next steps towards operational net-zero ambition 

Aramco this week published its first Sustainability Report, which outlines ways in which the company plans to further tackle emissions while delivering reliable, affordable energy solutions.

The report, which the company expects to update on an annual basis, provides further information on Aramco’s efforts to support the broader energy transition, with a set of interim targets the company aims to achieve by 2035. 

The report’s release follows the company’s announcement of its ambition to achieve net-zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its wholly-owned operated assets by 2050.

By 2035 Aramco aims to reduce its Upstream carbon intensity, already one of the lowest in the industry, by 15% to 8.7kg of CO2 equivalent per barrel of oil equivalent (CO2e/boe), against a 2018 baseline of 10.2kg CO2e/boe.

Aramco enters ranking as top oil and gas brand globally

Aramco has made its debut in the world’s most definitive brand valuation ranking as the top international oil company (IOC).  

Aramco is the highest new entrant in this year’s BrandZ ranking and the achievement is all the more remarkable given none of our IOC competitors have featured in the ranking since 2020. It is also the first time a company from the GCC has made the top 20.   

Kantar’s proprietary BrandZ ranking combines rigorous financial analysis — derived from S&P Capital iQ data — with primary research among customers to quantify the contribution of a brand’s equity to a business’ financial performance.  

Geological outcrops: Protecting Aramco’s precious assets

A number of exposures of rock in the Dhahran area, or outcrops, are historically important and scientifically valuable. This is because they provide crucial information about geological structures, rock types, and past processes. 

Certain outcrops are especially important as they contain information that is key to understanding the geology of the region. These made it possible for early geologists to define and map the layers of rock below the surface, and helped them find the Kingdom’s precious oil and gas resources. 

Nowadays, these same outcrops are a fundamental learning tool for the next generation, serving as a reference and natural lab for students and early career geoscientists.  

Aramco scientists also continue to use the wealth of information in outcrops to better understand the subsurface, capturing and combining it with other data using current methods and technologies to help the company make new discoveries, and sustainably develop resources. Given their importance, the company is now working hard to protect and preserve these precious geological assets for future generations.

Great Googly Moogly: Aramco teams up with Indian Premier League

With the completion of the 2022 season Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament last week in Ahmedabad, India, hundreds of millions of cricket fans around the globe have a new name to talk about: Aramco. 

This year, Aramco kicked off a partnership with the IPL to be the exclusive sponsor of the most prestigious individual awards in the sport: The Orange Cap for the highest run scorer, and the Purple Cap for the bowler who takes the most wickets.  A

Aramco’s entry into the world of professional cricket is just the latest of a series of sports sponsorships that share a common goal of spreading awareness about Aramco, while supporting excellence in the world of sports. As with Aramco’s sponsorship of Formula 1 and Ladies Professional Golf, IPL helps Aramco to introduce itself to targeted audiences, in this case the billion-plus population in the Indian subcontinent, who make up the fastest growing markets for energy solutions. 

South Ghawar Producing recognized for energy management and carbon reduction efforts

Aramco’s South Ghawar Producing Department (SGPD) recently won the gold award in two categories at the Green World Awards ceremony, with a first place in “Industry/Energy Management” for SGPD’s Energy Management Program (EnMP), and for “Carbon Reduction” for the zero flaring invention to boost production from low-pressure oil wells and revival of dead wells. 

With one of the lowest upstream energy intensity rates in the industry, and with an ambition to achieve net zero Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in our wholly owned operated assets by 2050, Aramco could play an important role in the global energy transition. 

SGPD’s gold award is a result of the company’s investment in innovative approaches and technologies to improve energy efficiency and potentially reduce carbon emissions. Even while Aramco is a recognized leader in this field, a remarkable feat given the large and scattered geographical area in which it operates, it remains committed to continual improvement in energy efficiency.