Energy industry companies are now incorporating
sustainability into their core business operations in order
to reduce growing risks and complexities that threaten
their ability to meet their business performance goals.
During CERAWeek 2012, which was held March 5-9 in Houston,
industry and policy leaders observed that energy companies
are taking proactive steps to ensure compliance with
proliferating regulations while also responding to
investors and customers who demand transparent reporting of
progress against voluntary sustainability goals. By looking
for opportunities to innovate and streamline critical
workflows, many of these energy companies are now
transforming sustainability into a competitive advantage.
"We are seeing more energy companies embrace
sophisticated enterprise sustainability management
strategies that enable them to lower their risk exposure
and uncover opportunities for new operational
efficiencies," IHS Senior Vice President Woody Ritchey
remarked at a dinner where he joined Connecticut
Commissioner for the Environment Dan Esty and ERM Partner
Matt Haddon to discuss a variety of issues with a select
group of industry executives.
ERM, an IHS alliance partner and CERAWeek sponsor, recently
conducted an analysis of major capital projects that have
experienced significant delivery delays and found that 70
percent were attributable to unresolved environmental or
sustainability challenges. As a result, companies are
incorporating sustainability in their management systems
alongside operational and technical issues.
In a plenary session on "Strategies for a Growing
World," Yves-Louis Darricarrere, president of
exploration & production and gas & power at Total SA, said:
"I would like to make it clear that our business will
not be sustainable if we are not responsible operators
accepted by all stakeholders, including the civil society.
We need to strongly commit to excellence, first and
foremost, in safety and environment. We also need to
promote transparency with regards to our operations. These
are prerequisites to get our license to operate."
This year CERAWeek, the world's premier energy
conference, featured increased focus by industry experts
who offered insights around sustainability issues and how
they impact the global energy marketplace as well as new
approaches and tools for addressing sustainability and
environmental challenges. CERAWeek 2012, chaired by IHS
CERA Chairman and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Daniel
Yergin, framed the sustainability discussion for this
year's conference by asking the question, "How do
you attain your energy and environmental objectives at the
same time?"
During the conference, executives and thought leaders
discussed a wide array of sustainability-related topics,
including:
-
Lessons learned in the past decade and emerging
strategies for success
-
How sustainability challenges are redefining the
competitiveness in the industry
-
How effective sustainability programs can boost an
organization's bottom line
-
The outlook for new regulations or standards and how they
may impact energy companies
One session on "New Strategies for Operational
Excellence: Crucible for the Energy Industry" featured
OSIsoft President Bernard Morneau; IHS Vice President, EHS
& Sustainability Innovation Technologies Joseph Stough;
LyondellBasell Vice President, HSE and Operational
Excellence, Sam Smolik; National Safety Council Executive
Committee Board of Directors member Mike Henderek; and IHS
Chief Energy Strategist David Hobbs as panelists. They
offered perspectives on critical issues such as evolving
industry approaches to operational excellence in the wake
of prior events; how industry is responding to public
demands and expectations (safety management); aligning
management incentives with safety and operational
excellence performance; and leveraging operational
excellence strategies to improve overall business
performance.
"The depth and breadth of issues that were addressed
at CERAWeek this year is another clear indication that
enterprise sustainability management is emerging as a
business imperative for energy industry executives around
the world," Ritchey said.
###
About IHS ( www.ihs.com)
IHS (NYSE: IHS) is the leading source of information,
insight and analytics in critical areas that shape
today's business landscape. Businesses and governments
in more than 165 countries around the globe rely on the
comprehensive content, expert independent analysis and
flexible delivery methods of IHS to make high-impact
decisions and develop strategies with speed and confidence.
IHS has been in business since 1959 and became a publicly
traded company on the New York Stock Exchange in 2005.
Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, USA, IHS employs more
than 5,500 people in more than 30 countries around the
world.
IHS is a registered trademark of IHS Inc. All other
company and product names may be trademarks of their
respective owners. Copyright © 2012 IHS Inc. All rights
reserved.
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