Oil and gas companies on the pathway to carbon neutrality: the role of rare-earth elements

The cost of sustainable development and achieving carbon neutrality has increasingly become a focus of research. Rare-earth elements are considered critically important to the green economy, as reducing carbon dioxide emissions is challenging without their involvement. This article analyzes various pathways for oil and gas companies to achieve carbon neutrality, with a specific focus on the demand for rare-earth elements. A classification of the primary pathways to carbon neutrality available to oil and gas companies is presented, along with a qualitative assessment of their associated rare-earth elements demand. Reports from leading global and Russian oil and gas companies (by market capitalization) were reviewed to identify the strategies they employ. All pathways to carbon neutrality for oil and gas companies was also classified in terms of rare-earth elements demand for its implementation. However, it was found that calculating the direct demand for rare-earth elements is feasible for wind power projects. Consequently, this study provides calculations of rare-earth elements demand for wind power projects implementation by international (11049.3 tons) and Russian (54 tons) oil and gas companies. Information about these projects and their rated capacity was taken from company reports and other open sources. Additionally, the carbon footprint associated with the mining and processing of the required rare-earth elements for these projects was calculated. For international companies, the carbon footprint is 211196.32 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, while for Russian oil and gas companies, it is 1033.13 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. Keywords: REE; pathways to carbon neutrality; greenhouse gas emissions; oil and gas companies; carbon footprint; wind power.