As the Report explains, this challenge has three parts: to provide the massive amount of extra energy needed to fuel development and reduce poverty; to keep supplies secure from disruption; and to do this in socially and environmentally responsible ways. Helping meet this challenge, while continuing to provide competitive financial returns, is at the heart of the commitment we made in 1997 to contribute to sustainable development.

Delivery and growth were our priorities for 2006. We delivered strong financial and operational performance, earning more than $26 billion and adding approximately two billion barrels to our proven oil, gas and mining reserves. Most of these profits are being re-invested in our business. They are being used to develop new projects to meet future energy needs, to improve safety and environmental performance at our facilities, and to develop new energy technologies. For example, we increased our spending on research and development by 50% last year.

Last year showed, once again, how important good environmental and social performance is to our business success. Good performance has to start with personal and process safety. Without a strong safety culture, all other aspects of our culture will erode.

Addressing concerns about climate change is also a critical task. I have said repeatedly that, for us, the debate about CO₂’s impact on the climate is over. I am pleased at how our people are responding to my call to find ways to mitigate CO₂ impacts from fossil fuels. Our focus is on what we can do to reduce CO₂ emissions. We are determined to find better, lower-cost ways to capture and store CO₂.

In 2006, wide-ranging efforts to address local concerns and rebuild trust meant we could restart construction at our gas project in Ireland. In Russia, a protocol to partner with Gazprom helped clear the way for the Sakhalin II project to complete construction and for the joint venture to meet its environmental and social commitments. In Nigeria, we shut down approximately half our production in the Delta region because of the security situation that made it impossible for us to protect our staff and contractors there.

We further standardised our approach to managing environmental and social impacts, and did more to learn from our successes and failures. For example, we introduced our first global Code of Conduct, and increased our focus on sustainable development at the earliest stages of new upstream projects. Our Project Academy, established in 2005 to strengthen the skills of our Project Managers, is making good progress. All our major facilities with communities nearby are using standardised social performance plans.

This year’s Sustainability Report includes a strong call for governments to act. That is because, as I discuss in an interview, leading companies and environmentally conscious consumers cannot meet the energy challenge on their own. Governments must set the framework to encourage the massive investments needed in new energy projects, in cleaner technologies and in conservation.

This Report has benefited significantly from the scrutiny and advice of our independent External Review Committee. As in any dialogue, there will not always be agreement on all points, but the significant changes we have made as a result of their feedback have strengthened our reporting.

I hope this Report, and the additional information on our website, helps you judge for yourself how well we are acting on our commitment to meet the world’s energy needs in environmentally and socially responsible ways.