Major Companies Blamed for Half of Global Emissions

180 companies are responsible for half of the world's emissions, according to a new report in Nature. Heatwaves have become 200 times more common since 1850.

Researchers focused on which entities have profited from emissions, rather than countries.

The international research report reveals that 180 different companies have been responsible for the worst carbon emissions, accounting for half of all global emissions from 1850 to 2023.

The report points out that large international companies like Exxon, an American oil company, and Chevron, another American energy company, along with state-owned oil companies like Aramco, Saudi Arabia, and NIOC, Iran, have contributed significantly to greenhouse emissions. Coal mining in the former Soviet Union and China is also highlighted.

The 14 worst emitters are responsible for 0.33 degrees of the 1.3 degrees of global warming observed so far, according to researchers.

Deadly Heatwaves

According to the report, heatwaves have become 200 times more common, and researchers claim that the 180 entities can be directly linked to the increase in extreme weather. For example, the heatwave that hit Sweden in 2022 became 52 times more likely to occur.

According to WHO, nearly 500,000 people die each year due to heatwaves, with over a third of them in Europe.

Emissions from Exxon and Aramco, for instance, made 51 heatwaves 10,000 times more likely.

"You could say that if you remove all other emitters and only keep, for example, Exxon or BP, some heatwaves that were previously impossible become possible," says Yann Quilcaille, climate researcher at ETH Zurich and lead author of the study, to TV4.

Legal Responsibility – A Sensitive Issue

Whether legal responsibility can be demanded from these entities is a sensitive issue, Quilcaille tells TV4, noting that lawyers have reviewed the report.

"I can present some scientific evidence, but the legal responsibility is for someone else to demonstrate."