CO2 Solutions CEO Comments on U.S. Withdrawal from Paris Agreement
TSX-V: CST
QUEBEC CITY, June 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ - Mr. Evan Price, President & Chief Executive Officer of CO2 Solutions Inc. (TSXV: CST) (the "Corporation"), today released the following comments relative to United States President Trump's announcement on June 1 of withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on climate change.
"On June 1, 2017, President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of the United States from the Paris Agreement. This agreement, which deals with mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, was adopted in December 2015 by virtually all nations worldwide. Since President Trump's withdrawal announcement, we at CO2 Solutions have received a number of queries from stakeholders and shareholders relative to the impact of this U.S. decision on CO2 Solutions. It is not the Corporation's usual practice to comment on the news of the day. However, we feel compelled to do so in this instance because of how this announcement intersects with the nature of our business. This is not a political statement. I have no interest in the political angles of this story. I am a CEO of a company informing his shareholders and stakeholders. My agenda is that of CO2 Solutions.
To the question of what impact the Paris Agreement withdrawal announcement will have on CO2 Solutions, the answer is: We expect it will have no impact on CO2 Solutions. Allow me to explain why:
- Donald Trump, the candidate, had throughout his campaign, promised to roll back as many carbon emissions regulations as he could and to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. That he did so shouldn't, and didn't, come as a surprise to anyone. Despite the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris agreement, the June 1 announcement doesn't alter the reality that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions continue to rise, that CO2 is the main contributor to GHG emissions (76% according the U.S. Environment Protection Agency), that climate change is real and damaging, and that effective and viable carbon capture technologies are required to mitigate approximately 15% of worldwide emissions (according the International Energy Agency). President Trump's June 1 announcement doesn't change these realities. On the road to addressing international GHG emissions, the U.S. President's June 1 announcement will be viewed simply as a minor speed bump of the kind you can expect with any issue of such importance.
- Prior to this announcement, most of the regulatory activity regarding carbon emissions in the United States was dictated by the States, not the federal government. The Californian cap-and-trade program is a case in point. The strong responses from California and New York (which together represent over 22% of the US economy) to the announcement was a confirmation that State-level policies on reducing GHG will continue to be implemented, regardless of the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. President Trump's June 1 announcement will not affect those State programs.
- Corporate leaders have time horizons that stretch well beyond electoral cycles. Corporate executives are making decisions today in consideration of the business environments that their companies will face in 10 to 20 years or more. Even leaders of companies with the highest GHG emissions have long ago accepted the connection between CO2 levels and climate change, and consequently have come out in favour of carbon pricing or other forms of emissions regulation. They have taken such positions irrespective of the policies adopted by their home countries in regard GHG emission reduction. Look no further than the Carbon Price Leader Coalition (https://www.carbonpricingleadership.org/) for confirmation of this fact. The attempt by CEO's from a diverse set of companies to influence the position of President Trump prior to his announcement and their vocal negative reaction to his final decision further confirm this. The June 1 announcement will not materially change the position of most corporate leaders.
I have been with CO2 Solutions as CEO for the past four years and, prior to that, as Chairman of the Corporation for five years. As part of my responsibilities, I am in frequent discussions with senior members of various governments and international corporate leaders. I have been privileged to witness the steady evolution of the thinking of these leaders on the subject of GHG emissions. They have moved beyond asking "if" this GHG issue is real, and have moved to actively seeking solutions to mitigate a known and accepted problem. CO2 Solutions has emerged over these years as one of the very few companies that can provide proven, low-cost and environmentally friendly solutions for carbon capture from industrial emission sources. With our Valorisation Carbone Québec project, we are positioned at the center of the world's most ambitious carbon capture and reuse project, in a market that McKinsey & Company has described as an annual $1 trillion opportunity in their report for the Global CO2 Initiative. Over the past months, actually coinciding with the Trump presidency, CO2 Solutions has witnessed an acceleration of interest in the solutions we offer. The predictable June 1 announcement has not and will not change the strong interest in our technology and the CO2 capture and reuse solutions we can provide. We remain as confident in the future as we have ever been."
About CO2 Solutions Inc.
CO2 Solutions is an innovator in the field of enzyme-enabled carbon capture and has been actively working to develop and commercialize the technology for stationary sources of carbon pollution. CO2 Solutions' technology lowers the cost barrier to Carbon Capture, Sequestration and Utilization (CCSU), positioning it as a viable CO2 mitigation tool, as well as enabling industry to derive profitable new products from these emissions. CO2 Solutions has built an extensive patent portfolio covering the use of carbonic anhydrase, or analogues thereof, for the efficient post‐combustion capture of carbon dioxide with low‐energy aqueous solvents. Further information can be found at www.co2solutions.com.
CO2 Solutions Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements in this news release may be forward-looking. These statements relate to future events, or CO2 Solutions' future economic performance, and reflect the current assumptions and expectations of management. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, general business and economic uncertainties, third party events and adverse market conditions as well as those risks set out in the Corporation's public documents filed on SEDAR. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. CO2 Solutions undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable law.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
SOURCE CO2 Solutions Inc.
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