Company: IMO
Filing Date: 2025-02-19
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000049938-25-000015
Chunk: 0

Company: IMPERIAL OIL LTD
Filing Date: 2025-02-19
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
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Item 1A.     Risk factors

Imperial’s financial and operating results are subject to a variety of risks inherent in oil, gas and petrochemical businesses and the pursuit of lower-emission business opportunities. Many of these risk factors are not within Imperial’s control and could adversely affect Imperial’s business, financial and operating results, or financial position. These risk factors include: 

Supply and demand

The oil, gas, fuels and petrochemical businesses are fundamentally commodity businesses. This means the company’s operations and earnings may be significantly affected by changes in oil, natural gas and petrochemical prices, and by changes in margins on refined products and petrochemicals. Crude oil, natural gas, petrochemical and petroleum product prices and margins depend on local, regional, and global events or conditions that affect supply and demand for the relevant commodity or product. Commodity prices have been volatile, and the company expects that volatility to continue during the lifespan of its major assets. Any material decline in crude oil prices could have a material adverse effect on the company’s Upstream operations, financial position, proved reserves and the amount spent to develop reserves. On the other hand, a material increase in crude oil prices could have a material adverse effect on the company's Downstream margins, depending on the market conditions for refined products. The company's pursuit of lower-emission business opportunities including carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, lower-emission fuels, and lithium also depends on the growth and development of markets for those products and services, including implementation of supportive and stable government policies and developments in technology to enable those products and services to be provided on a cost-effective basis at commercial scale. See "Climate change, energy transition and greenhouse gas restrictions" in this Item 1A. The company may also be impacted by changes in other commodities the company utilizes, such as prices and availability of feedstocks for lower-emission fuels including renewable diesel.

Economic conditions

The demand for energy and petrochemicals is generally linked closely with broad-based economic activities and levels of prosperity. The occurrence of economic downturns, recessions or other periods of low or negative economic growth will typically have a direct adverse impact on the company’s results. Other factors that affect general economic conditions, such as changes in population growth rates, government regulation or austerity programs, national or regional trade tariffs, trade sanctions or trade controls, international monetary and currency exchange rate fluctuations, decoupling of economies, disruptions in trade alliances or military alliances, or a broader breakdown in global trade,