In order to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius or less by the end of the century, oil and gas companies will eventually have to limit how much fossil fuel they extract. Most oil companies are facing this reality and writing down the value of their future oil assets. ExxonMobil is not, and the SEC wants to know why.
On Thursday, word came that ExxonMobil is being investigated for possibly misleading shareholders on the risks climate change poses to its business. On Friday, President Obama killed the Keystone XL oil pipeline to the US from Canada, citing the threat of climate change from burning fossil fuels. The oil business has seen worse weeks, but perhaps not many.
Residents of Mayflower, Ark., want payment from ExxonMobil for the environmental damage done by an oil spill there in March. In fact, they’re moving so fast they’ve forced the state and federal government to file suit against the company to seek fines and damages just a few months after the spill.