ExxonMobil's own scientists doubted climate fixes the company hyped

The year 1988 marked a pivotal moment in raising global awareness about climate change. NASA climatologist James Hansen testified before Congress, asserting that the climate was indeed warming and would continue to do so as long as humans continued to emit fossil fuel pollution into the atmosphere. Shortly thereafter, the United Nations established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Just weeks before the U.N. vote, Exxon’s own corporate research department employee, Frank Sprow, cautioned his colleagues through an internal memo that if a worldwide consensus emerged regarding the need to mitigate greenhouse gas effects, significant negative impacts on Exxon could arise. This memo is part of a collection of undisclosed documents recently released as a result of a lawsuit filed by Massachusetts against ExxonMobil in 2019.

Although the memo was referenced in a 2023 article by The Wall Street Journal, it has not been published in its entirety. Additional documents contained in the lawsuit filings and reported on for the first time reveal more recent statements from Exxon scientists that challenge the company's claims regarding its efforts in developing biofuels and carbon capture and storage solutions.