Big Business Encouraged to Think Responsibly
This review was conducted as part of TRENDS-2, an EU led project. The aim of the TRENDS-2 project was to investigate ways to satisfy Europe's future demands and needs for sustainable, secure, safe and clean energy supplies. It is within that scope that this review took place. The point of departure for the consultancy's research was for it to examine the degree to which health, safety, environment and quality (HSEQ) management was seen as being integrated with corporate social responsibility (CSR). Case studies were conducted into offshore oil and gas companies across Europe. In addition, workshops were organised to elucidate the theme to interested parties. These workshops were held at Modena University in Italy. The key findings of the research shed light on the state of corporate social responsibility actions in the offshore oil and gas industry. It was concluded that there seems to exist a lack of guidance and management tools, such as environmental and social impact assessments. It was noted that whilst the industry would clearly welcome more evidence of the business benefits to be accrued from investment in CSR, there is a danger that this emphasis would damage the trust of external stakeholders. Finally, it was recommended that further research be carried out. In particular, this would investigate the feasible extent and depth of CSR, the limits, if any, for companies and the role of governments, regulators and other stakeholders.
