Oxfam's analysis says six major oil and gas companies posted sharply higher profits while being linked to mounting climate costs. The charity estimated Chevron's quarterly profits at more than four times the prior quarter and ExxonMobil's earnings at more than triple, and it placed combined direct and indirect environmental damage at about $60 billion (bn) in 2025 using S&P Capital Trucost emissions data. The report set out calculations of earnings per second for ExxonMobil, Chevron and Shell to illustrate the scale of the profits.

The central finding drew on peer-reviewed research published in Nature that examined 213 heatwaves globally between 2000 and 2023 and concluded that each of five major oil firms had historical emissions sufficient to contribute to conditions that made roughly one in four of those events possible. The study identified 55 heatwaves out of 213 that would probably have been virtually impossible without human-induced climate change. Data for Italy based Eni was not available, and an academic involved in the IPCC assessment said the interpretation broadly reflected the peer-reviewed evidence while advising independent verification of the specific company-level calculations.

Oxfam highlighted regional impacts as extreme heat continued to batter South Asia, Europe and North America, noting that India and Pakistan endured prolonged heatwaves in 2026 and that in May, 97 of the world's 100 hottest cities were in India. The charity argued that families were paying multiple costs through destroyed homes and harvests, higher energy bills and a worsening cost of living linked to dependence on fossil fuels. Independent commentators agreed that fossil fuel emissions remained the dominant driver of warming but cautioned that coal, cement, agriculture, transport and land use change also contribute substantially to greenhouse gas emissions.

Industry noted that many firms plan to raise oil and gas production by 14 per cent by 2030, adding 2.5 million (mn) barrels a day. Analysts warned that even a 6 per cent rise in global production could lift end of century warming near 2.9°C and that some firms have reduced planned low carbon spending sharply.