We have expanded the list of climate policies we assess company engagement with to incorporate land-use related policy, referring to legislative or regulatory measures to enhance and protect ecosystems and land where carbon is being stored. Assessments under this category are currently underweighted in terms of their contribution to the overall company metrics. This weighting will be progressively increased over the next 6 months.
We adjusted the terminology used to describe the queries running down the left-hand side of our scoring matrix and added additional explanatory text to the info-boxes. This has no impact on the scores and methodology. It has been done following user feedback to improve clarity.
In this section, we depict graphically the relationships the corporation has with trade associations, federations, advocacy groups and other third parties who may be acting on their behalf to influence climate change policy. Each of the columns above represents one relationship the corporation appears to have with such a third party. In these columns, the top, dark section represents the strength of the relationship the corporation has with the influencer. For example if a corporation's senior executive also held a key role in the trade association, we would deem this to be a strong relationship and it would be on the far left of the chart above, with the weaker ones to the right. Click on these grey shaded upper sections for details of these relationships. The middle section contains a link to the organization score details of the influencer concerned, so you can see the details of its climate change policy influence. Click on the middle sections for for details of the trade associations. The lower section contains the organization score of that influencer, the lower the more negatively it is influencing climate policy.
Open PDF file of Data Source
Climate Lobbying Overview: GALP appears to have limited engagement on climate change policy and demonstrates mixed positions. The company’s top-line messaging is supportive of ambitious action on climate change, however, its engagement on the energy transition appears mixed, with positions supporting the continued role of unabated fossil gas in the energy mix.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: GALP’s engagement on climate change through its top-line communications appears to be broadly positive. In its Participation in Industry Associations Report, published in July 2021, the company supported the EU’s ambition to be climate neutral by 2050. Additionally, CEO Andy Brown appeared to support the need for global emission reductions in line with EU and Portuguese climate ambition in a December 2021 press release. The company also stated support for climate change regulation in the form of carbon pricing in its 2021 Annual Report, published in March 2022. GALP also advocated for measures to mitigate GHG emissions in its Participation in Industry Associations Report, published in July 2021. GALP has also been supportive of the UN Paris Agreement, notably in its 2020 Annual Report, published in March 2021.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: GALP has limited transparent engagement with specific climate-related regulations. In a February 2021 legislative consultation response, GALP appeared to support reforms to the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) with exceptions. Despite supporting positive reforms such as a higher emissions reduction target for EU ETS sectors, and supporting the inclusion of the maritime sector in the scheme, the company advocated against reforms to reduce the free allocation of emission allowances and supported modifications to carbon leakage protection to support specific emission-producing sectors, which would weaken the effectiveness of the policy. In the same consultation response, GALP appeared to be supportive of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, but with the exception that current carbon leakage protections should be replaced to continue providing support to certain sectors.
Positioning on Energy Transition: GALP appears to have mixed engagement on the energy transition, supporting the decarbonization of the energy mix alongside a continued role for unabated fossil gas. In its 2021 Annual Report, GALP promoted a role for unabated fossil gas in the energy mix, emphasizing the need to transition from coal to gas. Gabriel Sousa, CEO of GALP subsidiary, GALP Gás Natural Distribuição, also signed a March 2021 joint letter to the European Commission advocating for the inclusion of fossil gas and hydrogen blending in the EU Hydrogen Strategy, and supported a continued role for unabated fossil gas. However, CEO Andy Brown appeared to support a role for green hydrogen, produced from renewable electricity, in a March 2022 article by Dev Discourse. The company also supported transitioning the energy mix to renewable energy and Carbon Capture, Use and Storage (CCUS) technologies in its Participation in Industry Associations Report, published in July 2021.
Industry Association Governance: GALP has disclosed its industry association memberships and has published a review of the company’s alignment with their positions on climate change. However, this review did not disclose a framework for addressing potential cases of misalignment, and only described industry associations’ climate policy positions or engagement activities in broad terms, without reference to specific policies. GALP retains membership to SolarPower Europe, which engages positively on climate policy, and Hydrogen Europe, which has mixed positions on climate policy and regulation.