The chief executive of Exxon, Darren Woods, made his debut at Cop28 this weekend, the first time the boss of the US’s biggest oil and gas company has appeared at UN climate talks. Exxon and Saudi Arabia’s Aramco were among 50 oil and gas producers pledging to cut emissions from their own operations, though not to reduce oil and gas production. Woods spoke up in defence of carbon capture (CCUS), a technology crucial to the industry’s hopes of survival. CCUS will be critical to net zero – but should not, the IEA recommends, be a way to maintain the status quo, because of the vast amount of power that will be needed.