Australia's Woodside Energy (WDS) on Tuesday said it will retire its scope 3 investment and emissions abatement targets, which included plans to spend about $5 billion of capital by 2030 on new energy projects.
The targets were established in a different market context and no longer aligned with "evolving technology, current policy settings and customer demand," the company said.
"So, we had an ambition of spending $5 billion of capital by 2030 on new energy projects. And what we are talking today why retiring the target is recognizing that we don't see line of sight to having commercial value-accretive projects to meet that commitment by 2030," CEO and Managing Director Elizabeth Westcott said during an earnings call on Tuesday, as per a transcript available on FactSet.
"We continue to be interested in new energy opportunities, but we are being very disciplined with where we put our money and our ability to see line of sight today to further investment in new energy that would be commensurate with that $5 billion target is not there," she said.
Wescott said the targets were set under different market and energy-transition expectations and no longer reflect the slower development of lower-carbon technologies, including hydrogen, ammonia and carbon capture and storage, current policies or customer demand.
Woodside's new energy investments will be driven by customer demand and market commerciality as the company aims to cut $350 million in annual structural costs from 2028, she said. "New energy opportunities must be supported by clear customer demand and commercial markets. They must also compete for capital with other investment opportunities," she added.
Woodside said it is undertaking a strategic review of its Beaumont New Ammonia plant in Beaumont, Texas due to changes in the global market and regulatory environment, and will consider all options to maximize value.
The 1.1 million tonnes per annum ammonia synthesis plant commenced first production in December 2025, with Woodside assuming operational control in March 2026 after a successful completion of performance testing and handover from OCI Global.
For the six months period ended June 30, Woodside reported total production volumes of 86.5 million barrels of oil equivalent, 13% lower than the 99.2 million boe reported for the corresponding period last year.
In H1, gas production volumes stood at 46.1 million boe or 1.451 billion standard cubic feet per day, 21% down from last year's 58.2 million boe or 1.833 billion scf/d.
Total liquids output in H1 were reported at 39.4 million boe or 217,000 barrels per day, 4% lower from 41 million boe or 226,000 b/d in the year-ago period.
In H1, the company reported total sales of 99.8 million boe or 551,000 boe/d, a 5% decline from 104.8 million boe or 579,000 boe/d in H1 2025.
Woodside Energy said the Scarborough Energy Project in Western Australia is 98% complete and on track for its first liquefied natural gas cargo in Q4, while the Trion Project offshore Mexico is 64% complete and targets first oil in 2028.