Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Management

Strategy and Targets for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

PTTEP has committed to operating with minimal environmental impacts and integrated the impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services into the business decision-making process, by means of the promotion of the net positive impact on biodiversity and ecosystem services at all operational areas. To achieve the objective, PTTEP has set the targets as outlined below:

  • Avoid operating in World Heritage sites as defined by UNESCO and achieve No-Net Loss of biodiversity in protected areas as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Category I-IV protected areas by 2044
  • Achieve Net Positive Impact of Ocean Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (Ocean BES) value in domestic offshore operations by 2025 and all offshore operations by 2030, compared to the 2019 base year.
  • No Gross Deforestation* for E&P from 2021 onwards.

*The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) defines a forest as natural forests and forest plantations that have tree canopy covers more than 10 percent and areas of more than 0.5 hectare. The trees should be a minimum height of 5 meters. Forests are determined both by the presence of trees and the absence of other predominant land uses.

The Company requires third parties such as tier 1 suppliers, non-tier 1 suppliers, and partners committed to all Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services targets for all operations within PTTEP boundaries.

To ensure effective achievement on the targets, PTTEP developed the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (BES) Management Guideline in line with IPIECA's "A Guide to Developing Biodiversity Action Plans for the Oil and Gas Sector" and International Finance Corporation (IFC)'s Performance Standard 6: Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Management of Living Natural Resources. The management guideline has been implemented at all PTTEP operational sites since 2014, according to the following mitigation hierarchy:

  • Conduct biodiversity and ecosystem system service risk assessment in different project phases.
  • Develop Biodiversity Action Plan where there are high risks.
  • Implement Biodiversity Action Plan.
  • Monitor environmental impacts concerning biodiversity and ecosystem services.
  • Consider biodiversity offsets, where there is a residual impact, to compensate potential loss of biodiversity values in order to achieve no-net loss.

In 2020, the Company evaluated the net impact in monetary term in the assessment of environmental and social impacts from the Company's operations in Thailand and Myanmar. As of 2021, PTTEP achieved 29.5% progress toward the Net Positive Impact of Ocean Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (Ocean BES) value target in the domestic offshore operations in 2025. This indicator measures from BES value created each year against the 2019 baseline. BES value is derived from the impact area and BES Value Proxy, according to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) method under the Intergovernmental Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) approach.

Since the announcement of the commitment to No Gross Deforestation in 2021, the Company has had no activity in the operation area located in forestry and ensured its 100% implementation and compliance with the group-wide commitment, forest regulations, and mandatory standards. The evaluation of the compliance level has been introduced via internal and external monitoring and compliance audits. Furthermore, PTTEP is preparing to update the Vendor Sustainable Code of Conduct to ensure the effective protection and preservation of the biodiversity and ecosystem services and compliance with all commitments. The Code of Conduct will be integrated as part of the pre-qualification system for vendor acknowledgment. To monitor the compliance of vendors and suppliers, they will be tracked via the acknowledgment on the electronic system. This will enhance vendors' and suppliers' awareness, management, and mitigation of biodiversity and ecosystem services risks.

Furthermore, PTTEP collaborates with external organizations on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services such as;

  • IPIECA-IOGP Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Working Group (BESWG) and UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) to organize the workshop on ecosystem services in E&P industry,
  • Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) of Ocean for Life for 10-year cooperation (2020-2030) to promote and restore marine resources and biodiversity for ocean sustainability, enhance the quality of life and generate income for local communities in 17 provinces around the Gulf of Thailand where PTTEP has its operations.
  • Petroleum Institute of Thailand in corporation with other E&P operators in the gulf of Thailand, Department of Mineral Fuels, consent authorities for rig-to-reef project, and academic experts to study and develop a guideline on the rig-to-reef project in the gulf of Thailand.
  • Kasetsart University, under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote ocean sustainability through various initiatives to tackle national and global issues with focus on ocean health and biodiversity monitoring.

Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Risk Assessment

PTTEP manages biodiversity and ecosystem service risks by integrating them into the Environmental Impact Assessment of all E&P projects as well as impose Biodiversity Action Plan at projects with a high level of biodiversity risks. The action plan is designed to prevent the loss of endangered species as well as protecting and restoring ecosystem services that might be impacted by the company's operations.

The biodiversity and ecosystem service risk management assessment, conducted in 2017 and reviewed in 2021, showed that no project possessed high biodiversity risks. Moreover, PTTEP has completed the voluntary Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) for all operational assets that possess medium-level risks. The Company also organized workshops to enhance knowledge and understanding on biodiversity for personnel working in areas of moderate risk level.