Climate Policy Engagement Analysis
Climate Policy Engagement Overview: Coterra Energy (“Coterra”) has moderate levels of engagement with climate policy and holds broadly negative positions. Coterra has been particularly vocal in its support for the long-term use of oil and fossil gas in the energy mix, and has advocated to weaken US methane emissions regulations.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Coterra appears to have limited top-line communications on climate policy. In the organization’s 2022 annual SEC Filing, published in February 2023, Coterra acknowledged the risk of climate change regulation, but did not take a clear position on it. In the same report, Coterra acknowledged, but did not take a clear position on the Paris Agreement. Coterra does not appear to explicitly support the Paris Agreement, emissions reductions in line with IPCC guidelines, or the need for government regulation to respond to climate change.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: Coterra appears to have limited, but negative, engagement with climate-related regulation. In a consultation response to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in February 2023, the company opposed the proposed extension of methane emissions regulation, which entailed applying existing methane emissions regulations to polluting sources not before included; legislating for the use of advanced pollution detection methods, and imposing implementation requirements, including timelines, on states to limit methane pollution under the Clean Air Act (CAA). Furthermore, in a February 2023 joint letter to the EPA, Coterra opposed the extended use of Optical Gas Imaging (OGI) follow-up surveys to detect fugitive methane emissions in the atmosphere, claiming that they were ‘unnecessary or impractical’.
Positioning on Energy Transition: Coterra has been actively and negatively engaged on the energy transition, disclosing strong support for the long-term use of fossil gas. In a blog post uploaded by the company in February 2023, Coterra framed fossil gas as a ‘clean energy’, and emphasized concerns around the technical feasibility of a move away from fossil fuels in the energy mix. Furthermore, in a statement addressed to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in May 2022, Coterra supported the development of 'responsibly sourced gas' (RSG), a title created by the Tennessee Pipeline Company intended to support the buying and selling of 'low emission' fossil gas. According to an article published by Politico in June 2022, Coterra then ‘pushed back’ on FERC’s decision to reject the RSG proposal.
Industry Association Governance: Coterra disclosed membership of a number of industry associations through its 2022 Sustainability Report, but failed to disclose any further details as to the type of membership and/or role held within these industry associations. The company has not published an audit of its industry association memberships and climate lobbying. Coterra is a member of the American Petroleum Institute (API) which is actively and negatively engaged on climate policy.