CEO statement

2021 was a year when the global COVID 19 pandemic continued to disrupt lives, societies and industries. A year when concerns related to security of supply also became more real than ever, highlighting yet again the need for a strong and diversified energy sector.

For us, at OMV Petrom, 2021 was a milestone year, with the launch of our Strategy 2030. We have set out on an ambitious path to transform OMV Petrom for a lower carbon future, with sustainability fully embedded into our business plans. We put forward the largest private investment plan in the Romanian energy sector, totaling EUR 11 bn. Around 35% of our investments will go to low and zero carbon solutions. We also intend to enlarge the share of natural gas in our hydrocarbon production to about 70%, as we see natural gas as a key enabler for a successful energy transition in Romania.

Increased performance and transparency on ESG issues remain a key focus for us. In 2021, we continued to improve our disclosure related to climate change management, in accordance with the recommendations issued by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures. Our efforts were recognized by rating agencies such as Sustainalytics that placed us among the top 3% performing peer companies. It makes us proud to see that OMV Petrom’s management of sustainability is rated as strong. Moreover, at the same time holds us to account to keep working on the areas where we need to improve.

Our Net Zero journey

Addressing the global climate crisis is urgent and requires our immediate attention and action. In December 2021, we announced a bold investment plan, with the ambition to lead the energy transition in South-East Europe by capitalizing on emerging market opportunities. On our journey to reach Net Zero operations by 2050, we aim for a 30% reduction in the carbon emissions of our operations by 2030, versus 2019. Our combined Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions will decline by approximately 20% by 2030. We also target a reduction in our methane intensity to less than 0.2% by 2025, in line with international targets.

I welcome you all to read through our Report, as we take a look back at our promises and how far we've come, as well as introducing our new commitments to sustainability. Most prominently, we share in this Report the story of our energy and our people year after year, with 2021 serving as an example of our ability to adapt, overcome and continue to deliver results. This is our sustainability journey. This is what we do: provide the energy for a better life!

Christina Verchere

Our Strategy 2030 builds on a strong sustainability framework, with a clear commitment to run responsible operations, foster people and communities and leverage innovation and digitalization.

 

Our new climate targets will soon be followed by new commitments in other sustainability areas.

Run Responsible operations

Health and safety remain a top priority for OMV Petrom and, in this context, we deeply regret the two contractor fatalities that occurred in 2021. We express our sincere condolences to their families. Our goal remains to avoid any health and safety incidents.

 

Running responsible operations is also about focusing on resource efficiency and acting with integrity and transparency towards all our stakeholders. We have zero tolerance for any form of corruption and expect our partners to do the same.

Foster People & Communities

As a corporate citizen, OMV Petrom contributes significantly to the economic and social fabric of society. We want to build and keep a talented, diverse and engaged team to help the company transition to a low-carbon business and achieve its regional growth goals. Diversity and inclusion are powerful advantages that aid in the creation of business value and support our ability to innovate. We continued to increase women’s representation in leadership positions and are already ahead of our 30% target for 2025. 

 

We strive to make a positive difference in our communities by listening and acting on their concerns, as well as supporting their long-term development. We continued to invest in infrastructure to improve access to basic services such as healthcare and education in the pandemic context. And our three-year forestation program initiative became a collaborative platform and a collection of “firsts”: the first Tiny Urban forest in Romania and the first platform for calculating and estimating the carbon sink potential of newly planted forests.

Leverage Innovation & Digitalization

To support our ambitious decarbonization plans, we will invest approximately 2 bn euro in innovation and new technologies, mainly in hydrogen and carbon capture and storage. The latter is expected to help us achieve the target to capture more than 2 mn tons of CO2 per year by 2030. And as partners in a European research project, we will implement a carbon capture and utilization pilot in our Petrobrazi refinery.

 

The far-reaching changes brought about by the energy transition cannot happen without digitalization. We constantly focus on developing the digital skills of our employees and we are leveraging the power of digitalization to simplify and automate processes within the company. This will help us improve our organization’s agility and offer a better experience for our customers.