The logo of Saudi Aramco at a press conference in Saudi Arabia in November 2019 (Reuters)

Google claims that their joint partnership with oil giant Saudi Aramco is environment-friendly, but that claim has sparked both criticism and skepticism: is it really possible to stay green while working in the quite dirty business of oil production?

Thomas Kurian, head of the cloud-computing division, denied all allegations of greenwashing during an interview with Bloomberg TV’s Emily Chang, and at the same time admitted to working with Big Oil, “but to the environmentally clean or green parts of these companies," adding, “We have said that again and again that we don’t work with the oil and gas division within Aramco.”

Here's the twist: Just months after the denial, Aramco was found to be using Google Cloud for the "efficient" transportation of methane gas, which - when it is combusted as fuel - becomes the top source of carbon emissions - thus, contributing to the climate crisis.

A data center pertaining to the collaboration is due to be constructed in Dammam, where oil was first discovered in 1938 and where Aramco draws out its oil today.

Putting business first

Google Spokesperson Ted Ladd defended the collaboration and further denied it in a statement to The Intercept, saying it was aiding Aramco to “protect the environment.”

“This is entirely consistent with the type of work Google Cloud does with energy companies — in this case, helping them track emissions and gas leaks to protect the environment,” Ladd said, adding, “We are not doing work in the exploration and production business with energy firms.”

Johanna Neumann, a senior director with renewable energy advocacy group Environment America, told The Intercept, “The sooner the world ditches gas and goes 100% renewable, the better it is for the environment and public health, but the transition won’t happen overnight,” adding that companies like Aramco must be held responsible for methane pollution.

However, other critics don't see that the same way. Gregory Trencher, professor of environmental studies at Kyoto University in Japan, stated, “These efforts certainly sound like they are driven by the bottom-line and not the desire to align businesses with carbon-free investments.”

Climate scientists frequently criticize Aramco's so-called green energy narrative which made it a $6.7 trillion company.

'Pretty bad at their jobs'

A New York Times investigation discovered that Aramco's rhetoric is intended to attract clients and keep the world wanting Saudi oil and that it gains its credibility by reducing methane leaks.

Last year, a 2022 report by Oil Change International found that Saudi Aramco invested in more gas and oil projects than any other energy company as it is currently competing to rank third in the world in oil and gas operations until 2025.

Google Cloud could possibly be aiding Aramco to go against the common global perception that fuel pipelines need to be ditched to avoid contributing to the climate crisis.

Oil Change International's senior campaigner Collin Rees said, “Kurian’s statement that his team is ‘helping oil and gas companies decarbonize in a variety of ways’ is concerning on two levels, first, if so they’re pretty bad at their jobs — because we’ve seen almost no meaningful decarbonization in the sector — and second, it implies a continued existence for the sector or an ‘acceptable’ level of emissions, when we know that level must be near-zero.”

Contradiction 'impossible to ignore'

A 2020 Greenpeace investigation called out Google for “helping Big Oil profit from climate destruction,” which came after a now-deleted section on Google’s website before 2019 stated ways in which Google helped companies like Aramco pump even more oil, namely Chevron, by using “Google’s AutoML Vision Al tools to parse Chevron’s vast data sets and revisit potential subsurface deposits that were previously passed over due to inconclusive or hard to parse data.”

Although Google claimed afterward that custom AI would no longer be employed for drilling, it remains a member of the oil and tech consortium, Open Subsurface Data Universe, which uses data to enhance the extraction of oil and gas.

Greenpeace campaigner Xueying Wu told The Intercept that “Google’s collaboration with Aramco works against the company’s climate commitments” and that "it’s like eating organic food at home while collecting dividends from a pesticide business – there is a contradiction that is impossible to ignore.”

Part of Kurian's denial includes saying that Google Cloud operates with Aramco's system integration division, not the oil and gas division.

When asked for specific information by The Intercept, Aramco’s media relations office provided the company's “digital transformation” page link that demonstrates how Aramco uses technology for its business.

So, back to the question of whether it is possible for Aramco to stay green in its oil business, while it leaks methane and polishes itself with greenwashing ads. It goes without saying that it is absolutely not - and it can't be a part of the solution to the climate crisis either.