Imperial Oil Limited
IMO
Energy
5
exclusion reasons
3 themes
This page is part of our public exclusion list — a transparency tool that shows which companies we screen out and why. It is not investment advice, and it is not an accusation. But it is subject to change as our understanding of the facts evolves.
Imperial Oil Limited is a major Canadian upstream oil and gas producer, approximately 70% owned by ExxonMobil. Per the company's FY2024 annual report, Imperial achieved its highest annual production in over 30 years at 433,000 gross BOE/d from its upstream operations, including a full-year production record at Kearl of 281,000 gross BOE/d (200,000 Imperial's share) and Cold Lake thermal in situ production of 148,000 gross BOE/d, a nearly 10% increase from 2023. Fourth quarter 2024 net income was CAD $1,225 million with cash flows from operations of CAD $1,789 million. The company continues to expand oil sands output through solvent-assisted SAGD technology at Grand Rapids. Imperial also carries a CAD $805,340 oil spill penalty under Canadian environmental law. The company's business is fundamentally and irreversibly tied to bitumen and heavy oil extraction.
Sarnia refinery SO2 violations directly impacted adjacent Aamjiwnaang First Nation community; 11 documented unlawful releases 2019 violated Ontario Environmental Protection Act; community bears disproportionate exposure burden from refinery corridor
Imperial Oil is Canada's largest petroleum refiner and a majority-owned subsidiary of ExxonMobil, operating three refineries with a combined capacity of nearly 400,000 barrels per day. Per Imperial's Q4 2025 earnings release, full-year downstream throughput averaged 402,000 barrels per day at 93% capacity utilization, with petroleum product sales of 470,000 barrels per day. The company's refining operations include the Sarnia, Ontario facility, which has a documented history of environmental violations including 11 unlawful sulfur dioxide releases in 2019 that violated Ontario's Environmental Protection Act, resulting in penalties exceeding C$800,000. Imperial is a fully integrated fossil fuel company with upstream production, downstream refining, and retail fuel distribution across Canada.
Imperial Oil Limited is an integrated oil sands producer whose emissions intensity significantly exceeds its sector peers. The company’s primary operations—including oil sands mining, upgrading, and refining—are among the most carbon-intensive methods of producing liquid fuels. No recent emissions data, reduction targets, or governance disclosures were reviewed for this assessment; a current evaluation of the company’s climate transition pathway relative to industry benchmarks is required to confirm the exclusion.
Imperial Oil operates the Kearl oil sands mine and Sarnia refinery in Canada. The company has faced EPA and Ontario environmental enforcement actions, including a $900,000 fine for Environmental Protection Act violations at its Sarnia refinery.
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Companies appear on our exclusion list based on our investment judgment — not because they've done anything illegal. This is a difference of values and opinion, not an accusation of wrongdoing. Exclusion does not constitute a recommendation against investing in any company, and absence from the list does not constitute a recommendation to invest.
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