Leaders and Laggards: How Have Oil and Gas Companies Responded to the Energy Transition?

Oil and gas firms are central to the global energy supply. As the transition to renewable energies plays out, how will oil and gas firms position themselves for the future? What strategies will these firms deploy as they prepare for the transition? Will they proactively engage in the search for viable renewable energy alternatives or will they continue to focus on oil and gas with the expectation that the world will continue to need fossil fuels for many more decades? This chapter explores how the oil and industry is responding to the energy transition. It discusses broad trends from a study of global oil and gas companies and the approaches they have adopted in addressing the energy transition. The chapter focuses on a broad spectrum of adaptation strategies ranging from a complete transition away from fossil fuels to middle-of-the road approaches that hedge the bets between fossil fuels and renewables, and a business-as-usual approach that seems to wish away the energy transition. We also address some of the normative and societal pressures shaping the firms' strategic choices.