OMV Petrom to spend 35% of capex on low-carbon business

Austro-Romanian energy group OMV Petrom said on December 7 it would spend 35% of the €11bn ($12.4bn) it plans to allocate in capital expenditure between now and 2030 on building up its low-carbon business.

The company, majority-owned by Austria's OMV, is targeting a 30% reduction in the carbon intensity of its operations by 2030, along with a 20% cut in the intensity of its Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. It wants to bring down its methane intensity to under 0.2% by 2025 in line with international targets.

Expanding the role of gas in the company's hydrocarbon production mix to 70% will also contribute to its climate goals.

OMV Petrom will also invest in renewable power and biofuels production, with plans to roll out 1 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. In addition, it wants to build up a low-carbon mobility network comprising over 500 points of alternative fuels, including LNG, CNG and electricity.

In the second half of the decade OMV Petrom will also ramp up investments in hydrogen and carbon capture and storage.

All told, OMV Petrom expects its low-carbon business to generate 15% of its total clean current cost of supply earnings by 2030.