Firms like PetroChina (601857.SS) and CNOOC Gas and Power have signed long-term contracts with Shell (SHEL.L) to buy "carbon neutral" liquefied natural gas (LNG), which uses "forest offsets" to balance out carbon emissions. Greenpeace, which has long opposed fossil fuel producers counting carbon offsets toward their emissions reduction goals, said the "carbon neutral" branding was misleading the public. "For oil and gas companies in particular, carbon offsets are a smokescreen to obscure their continued, redoubled carbon emissions," said Li Jiatong, project leader with Greenpeace in Beijing. Rising sales of "carbon neutral" LNG are being driven by a surge in gas demand, particularly in Asia. While it is still a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, gas is cleaner than coal and has been described as a "bridge fuel" in the global energy transition, but anti-fossil fuel groups oppose any new gas projects.

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Persons: Stringer, Li Jiatong, PetroChina, COP28, Polly Hemming, Hemming, David Stanway, Andrew Hayley, Emily Chow, Sonali Paul Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Greenpeace, CNOOC, Power, Shell, International Energy Agency, Energy, Australia Institute, Thomson Locations: Nantong, Jiangsu province, China, Rights SINGAPORE, Beijing, Asia