Stephens’ recent research, published last week in the journal Energy, Sustainability, and Society, found that when oil companies do talk about renewables, it’s often in a way that reinforces negative perceptions about wind and solar power.

Along with researchers at Northeastern University and Columbia University, Stephens analyzed how BP, Exxon, Shell, and the French oil giant Total Energies discussed solar, wind, and other sustainable energy sources in their annual reports from 2016 through 2022.

“We found out that they were talking about renewables as kind of in service of expanding fossil fuels,” Stephens said. At times, this has been literal, such as Total’s recent floating offshore wind project that powers an oil and gas platform. After 2020, oil companies began highlighting downsides of renewables more frequently, discussing their costs and intermittency, the study found.