Changing Interests in Arctic Oil and Gas Development
The research focused on describing indicators, and trends in private sector investment policies related to Arctic oil and gas development. The study compared corporate and State policies affecting support for Arctic oil and gas development over the past two decades to look for regional differences affecting where and when development occurred.
Current trends in corporate sustainability policies may affect the future of Arctic oil and gas development. This may influence the scale and location where oil and gas development occurs.
Private sector investments that fund new development projects are an important driver in Arctic oil and gas. Recent trends in corporate sustainability policies provide indicators of how investment interests in new Arctic oil and gas development are changing, with different impacts across the Arctic. This study assesses how interest in Arctic oil and gas development has manifested across the Arctic in the past and describes how a focus on climate change-related corporate policies may affect the scale of Arctic oil and gas development in the future. The potential for keeping fossil fuels undeveloped in the Arctic is important for future scenario assessments on the magnitude and source of future global carbon emissions.