BP : Target Neutral is celebrating 10 years of working with customers to reduce carbon emissions

BP Target Neutral, BP's not-for-profit carbon offsetting business, is celebrating 10 years of helping our customers offset their personal and business carbon emissions.

Over the past 10 years BP Target Neutral has offset 2.5 million tonnes of carbon on behalf of customers, half of which has been achieved in the past three years. That's equivalent to taking around 1.2 million European cars off the road for one year.

This has been achieved with innovative carbon neutral products, a new carbon neutral fuel card for fleet operators and a set of easy-to-use tools such as online carbon calculators - all of which have contributed to BP Target Neutral's steady increase in business participation which has seen a threefold increase in the past five years.

Andrea Abrahams, global director of BP Target Neutral, explains: 'This is a business-led programme. We encourage our customers to use our tools and products which in turn help them achieve both their sustainability and commercial goals. Over the last three years we have adjusted the BP Target Neutral model and we are now working much more closely with our business customers to provide innovative solutions for their operations.'

These solutions include Castrol Professional, a global range of carbon neutral lubricants for the automotive industry, and PTAir, the world's first lower carbon and carbon neutral purified terephthalic acid (PTA). BP Aral has also recently launched a range of Carbon Neutral Fuelcard options supported by BP Target Neutral.

Tufan Erginbilgic, chief executive Downstream, explains: 'The challenge is to manage and meet the world's growing demand for energy, whilst addressing climate change. At BP we see a number of ways this can be achieved with carbon pricing by governments being the most comprehensive and economically efficient policy to limit greenhouse gases.

'Additionally, we recognize the need for BP to improve the carbon efficiency of our own operations and the products we sell to our customers. It's also important to our customers that they find ways to reduce their impact on the environment. BP Target Neutral supports our business and our customers, as we seek to reduce our environmental impact.'

All of BP Target Neutral's offers are backed by world-class carbon offset projects around the world and overseen by an independent advisory and assurance panel.

Notes

1. Based on the JEC Well to Wheel GHG emission data for a typical European gasoline car and average annual mileage in the UK, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden and Norway
2. Based on number of off-setting transactions that BP Target Neutral manages

Notes to editors

• BP Target Neutral is administered by BP as a not-for-profit scheme - BP covers BP Target Neutral's operating costs. BP Target Neutral's work is governed by an independent advisory and assurance panel of prominent environmental and industry experts. The panel ensures that all policies and activities conform to best practice in carbon management, and where possible will seek to set new standards for that best practice.
• Members of the BP Target Neutral advisory and assurance panel include Mark Kenber, former CEO of the Climate Group: Mike Barry, Director of Plan A, M&S: Rita Clifton, CBE: and Tim Smit, co-founder Eden Project.
• For more information please visit www.bptargetneutral.com

Further information

BP press office - London
+44 (0)20 7496 4076, bppress@bp.com