At ExxonMobil's 119th Annual Meeting, Lee Raymond discussed the significant challenges of addressing climate change.

Climate Change Deserves Serious Attention by Industry and Government

"We believe that preservation and improvement of the environment are important goals for everyone, and goals that we as a company share and have an obligation to address. We also believe that there are other equally vital public interests. Foremost among these is economic growth, which is essential to the well-being of people around the world.

We support taking concrete actions now to limit greenhouse gas emissions in a manner that does not threaten economic welfare.

We strongly favor, and are providing financial support for, additional research on climate change.

The debate over Kyoto has distracted policymakers for too long. I am encouraged to see more constructive discussions focusing on more realistic approaches. That said, the overall issue remains to be addressed. We think the best path forward is through attention to longer-range technological approaches and voluntary actions, as well as a strong program of climate science.

We have been doing a number of things that promote conservation and the efficient use of energy, while emphasizing alternative energy approaches.

For example, we continue to build cogeneration facilities at our refineries that can save 30 percent of the energy that would otherwise be required.

We are working with several automobile companies on advanced vehicle and fuel systems, such as the fuel-cell technology we are pursuing with General Motors and Toyota (pictured above). We believe steps such as these are the more realistic and fruitful way to address the risks of climate change."