(Adds responses from Shell and Chevron)
By Timothy Gardner
WASHINGTON, Sept 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic lawmakers on
Thursday asked the chiefs of four major fossil fuel companies
and two lobbying groups to testify next month on whether the
industry led an effort to mislead the public and prevent action
to fight climate change.
House Oversight Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney and Ro
Khanna, chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment, sent
letters to the chief executives of Exxon Mobil Corp,
Chevron Corp, BP USA, and Royal Dutch Shell Oil
Co, asking them to appear before a hearing on Oct. 28
and provide emails and documents.
They also sent the requests, first reported by the New York
Times, to the heads of two lobbying groups: the American
Petroleum Institute (API) and the Chamber of Commerce.
"I plan to get to the bottom of how fossil fuel companies
have raked in trillions of dollars of profit at the expense of
our planet and our health, all while spreading doubt and
disinformation about the dangers of fossil fuels," Maloney said
through a spokesperson.
The letter cited a study in the peer-reviewed journal
Climatic Change that said 91 think tanks and advocacy
organizations that downplayed global warming were funded by
Exxon and industry groups.
The requests come months after a video surfaced in June, in
which an Exxon lobbyist said https://www.reuters.com/business/sustainable-business/exxon-lobbyist-duped-by-greenpeace-says-climate-policy-was-ploy-ceo-condemns-2021-06-30
the company's public support for a tax on carbon was a ruse
because the plan to curb climate change would never gain enough
political support to be adopted. The day the footage aired,
Darren Woods, Exxon's chairman and chief executive, condemned
the lobbyist's remarks.
The requests also come as Democrats seek to pass climate
measures in a massive budget reconciliation bill, some of which
fossil fuel interests oppose because they could add costs to
drilling and mining.
Exxon said it will continue to communicate with staff on the
committee about its requests. Chevron said it was reviewing the
committee's letter.
Shell said it looks forward to working with the committee
and supports the transition to a lower-carbon future.
BP said it received the letter and is advocating for
policies that support the transition to a net-zero emissions
world by 2050.
API spokesperson Bethany Aronhalt said her organization
welcomes the opportunity to testify and "advance our priorities
of pricing carbon, regulating methane and reliably producing
American energy."
A spokesperson for the Chamber of Commerce said the group
believes that inaction on climate change is not an option and
that it has been working with lawmakers on solutions, "most
notably" in the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
(Reporting by Timothy Gardner; Editing by Aurora Ellis and
Jonathan Oatis)
