TIDMWEN
RNS Number : 8850S
Wentworth Resources PLC
19 November 2021
19 November 2021
WENTWORTH RESOURCES PLC
("Wentworth" or the "Company")
Announcement of agreement between Wentworth and Vitol SA
to offset carbon emissions at Mnazi Bay from 2022
Partners will jointly develop new community-focused carbon
credit programmes aligned to UN Sustainable Development Goals in
Tanzania
Wentworth Resources (AIM: WEN) ("Wentworth" or "the Company"),
the independent, Tanzania-focused natural gas production company ,
is pleased to announce it has entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding ("MOU") with Vitol SA ("Vitol") regarding the supply
of carbon credits to partially offset the impacts of its emissions
footprint at Mnazi Bay.
Highlights:
-- Wentworth and Vitol will jointly develop new community-focused
carbon credit programmes in Tanzania, with Wentworth committing
to offtake a material portion of the carbon offsets between
2022 and 2030;
-- Wentworth and Vitol will co-design the projects with stakeholders,
local implementation partners and Government, thereby
ensuring the co-benefits of the projects are aligned to
the UN Sustainable Development Goals and creating immediate,
positive outcomes for the partnering communities associated
with Wentworth's working interests and operations;
-- The immediate objective is for Wentworth to offset all
Scope 1 and 2 emissions and partially offset Scope 3 emissions
from 2022;
-- Vitol and Wentworth will be co-financing the programmes,
demonstrating a united commitment to deliver tangible
impacts to the communities and country in which Wentworth
supplies natural gas;
-- All credits will be registered with international accreditation
bodies, such as VERRA or Gold Standard;
-- The carbon offsetting programmes and emissions reporting
will be independently audited from 2022.
Increasing affordable, reliable and cleaner energy access in
Tanzania
In Q2 2021, Wentworth launched its inaugural Sustainability
Report identifying climate change mitigation and greenhouse gas
emissions reduction as key strategic priorities for the business,
to safeguard the interests of all its stakeholders within Tanzania
and outside. To further formalise its strategic focus on climate
action and its broader ESG priorities, Wentworth formed a Board
Sustainability Committee in September of this year, providing
greater oversight of the business' ESG risks and opportunities.
As a domestic natural gas producer in Tanzania, Wentworth is
playing a critical role in increasing energy access for communities
across Tanzania whilst simultaneously decarbonising the energy mix
away from higher emitting fuels such as HFO and diesel and
replacing it with lower carbon natural gas which works hand-in-hand
with hydropower to support grid reliability.
With only 33% of the country's population with access to
electricity and 7.7 million households without access to power,
there is a significant opportunity for Wentworth to transform
Tanzanian lives and communities by making electricity more
accessible, reliable and affordable. ([1])
Commitment to responsibly manage Wentworth's emissions
footprint
Scope 1 and 2 emissions
In its Sustainability Report, Wentworth measured its emissions
footprint in line with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Scope 1 and 2
emissions at Mnazi Bay demonstrated an emissions intensity in 2020
of 0.42kg/CO2 boe (1,676.9t CO2 e), one of the lowest in the
UK-listed E&P sector.
Whilst Wentworth's emissions footprint is proportionately lower
than most on a Scope 1 and 2 intensity basis, the business
recognises that it must take continuous action to minimise its
impacts in the most responsible way for all of its
stakeholders.
Wentworth believes it has responsibility as an engaged and
active owner of Mnazi Bay to work with its joint venture partners,
investors, regulators and host country to accelerate its
decarbonisation as swiftly as possible.
Ongoing emissions reduction is a key driver of Wentworth's
strategy and as non-operator at Mnazi Bay, the business intends to
work closely with its operator and partner Maurel et Prom to
identify innovative solutions to further lower its Scope 1 and 2
emissions in the near and medium term.
Wentworth has made good progress during 2021 on reducing its
Scope 1 and 2 emissions and looks forward to providing an update on
its emissions reduction measures in its 2021 Sustainability
Report.
Scope 3 emissions
Whilst Wentworth's Scope 3 emissions represent the largest
proportion of its overall emissions, the business recognises the
role that natural gas has played in reducing the emissions
intensity of the energy mix in Tanzania whilst also rapidly
increasing energy access to some of the country's most vulnerable
communities in both rural and urban areas.
To ensure it takes responsibility for emissions generated across
its entire value chain, Wentworth will seek to partially offset its
Scope 3 emissions from 2022.
Near zero gas flaring
Wentworth has minimal flared emissions in comparison to its
industry peers, with a pilot flare used solely as a mandatory
safety mechanism. Safety flares accounted for 7% of its Scope 1
emissions in 2020 (118t CO2 e).
Committing to transparent and third-party validated reporting on
emissions disclosure and carbon offsetting
Wentworth will continue to disclose its emissions on an annual
basis in line with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board
(SASB) standards. In 2021, Wentworth disclosed its 2020 Scope 1 and
2 emissions and will be disclosing this data alongside its Scope 3
emissions in its 2021 Sustainability Report.
[1] USAID Power Africa Fact Sheet: Tanzania, 2020
In anticipation of future regulatory requirements for London
Stock Exchange AIM-listed businesses, Wentworth is also exploring
reporting in line with TCFD recommendations as part of its ongoing
climate strategy and disclosure roadmap.
Strengthening its commitment to transparency and accountability,
Wentworth's emissions reporting and carbon offsetting programmes
will be independently audited from 2022.
Katherine Roe, CEO of Wentworth, commented:
"Emerging economies, particularly in Africa, are
disproportionately impacted by climate change, despite having
contributed the least in terms of global warming - yet the threat
of energy poverty to a country like Tanzania is very real and a
just transition is critical. Whilst COP26 has elevated climate to
the very top of the corporate and global agenda, we hope it also
paves the way for a more inclusive conversation with emerging
economies to ensure the energy transition places them at the centre
too.
Our gas plays a critical role in addressing the energy access
gap in Tanzania, but we must endeavour to do more to mitigate the
impacts from fossil fuels. Whilst investments are made to achieve a
global net zero ambition, we must be responsible in playing our
part to offset the negative impacts from our production right now.
Whilst being a non-operating partner at Mnazi Bay, we are working
actively with Maurel et Prom to reduce our operational emissions
but in the interim we do not want to be complacent.
We are proud to be working with Vitol, an expert in the carbon
offsetting industry, to identify credible, high-quality, and
impactful programmes with UN SDG-aligned benefits in Tanzania. Our
communities are critical to maintaining our licence to operate, and
we are committed to removing, avoiding and offsetting emissions as
much as we can that are potentially damaging to their
livelihoods.
We recognise that carbon offsets are not the single solution to
climate change and will continue to prioritise abatement where
possible. We look forward to updating our stakeholders on our
ongoing progress as we strive to be a responsible partner for
Tanzania".
Michael Curran, Head of Carbon Emissions Matrix, Vitol,
added:
"We are pleased to be working with Wentworth on these projects.
Across our carbon business we are committed to only developing high
quality projects that combine environmental benefits with a strong
alignment to the UN SDGs. This is a great example of cooperation
with a responsible in-country producer where we co-design a
purpose-built carbon offset programme together".
Enquiries: Katherine Roe, katherine.roe@wentplc.com
Chief Executive Officer +44 (0) 7841 087 230
Wentworth
AIM Nominated Adviser
and Joint Broker
Callum Stewart
Stifel Nicolaus Ashton Clanfield
Europe Limited Simon Mensley +44 (0) 20 7710 7600
Joint Broker
Peel Hunt Richard Crichton
LLP Alexander Allen +44 (0) 20 7418 8900
Communications Adviser
Sara Powell
Ben Brewerton
FTI Consulting Jourdan Webb +44 (0) 20 3727 1000
About Wentworth Resources
Wentworth Resources plc (AIM: WEN) is a leading, domestic natural
gas producer in Tanzania with a core producing asset at Mnazi
Bay in the onshore Rovuma Basin in Southern Tanzania.
Inside Information
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by
Wentworth to constitute inside information as stipulated under the
Market Abuse Regulation (EU) no. 596/2014 ("MAR"). On the
publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information
Service ("RIS"), this inside information is now considered to be in
the public domain.
Notes to Editors
Glossary
"Scope 1 Emissions" Direct emissions from a company's owned or
controlled sources.
"Scope 2 Emissions" Indirect emissions from the generation of
purchased energy.
"Scope 3 Emissions" All indirect emissions (not included in
Scope 2) that occur in a company's value chain, including both
upstream and downstream emissions.
All definitions are according to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol
.
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