A Letter from the CEO

This past year, everyone with an interest in the energy industry—and in corporate citizenship more generally— was reminded of the critical importance of corporate accountability and responsibility.

The Deepwater Horizon incident in the Gulf of Mexico last summer shook our industry and the confidence of many of our stakeholders. After 14,000 deepwater wells drilled successfully around the world, this isolated incident caused many to ask fundamental questions about what it means to be a good corporate citizen in the energy industry. The incident was a painful reminder about the importance of integrity and responsible operations.

As you will read in this report, ExxonMobil remains committed to a systematic and unwavering focus on corporate responsibility at all levels. Our own experience after the ExxonValdez oil spill fundamentally shaped the way our company understands and manages risk. It motivated us to recommit ourselves—that safety, operational excellence, environmental protection, financial discipline, and ethical standards must be a part of our business each and every day.

This year’s Corporate Citizenship Report details our systematic approach to managing our global operations, and the measures we employ to successfully operate in a variety of environments. It describes how we address the challenges of developing energy resources—and supplying that energy to world markets while delivering a return to our shareholders.

There is no question that this requires the constant management of risk. The sustainability of our business is based on our ability to apply consistent processes and systems in our daily operations to ensure that risk is identified, planned for, and successfully managed. We recognize that embedding the highest standards of safety, environmental performance, ethics, economic stewardship, and community engagement in every aspect of our activities is critical to protecting local communities and supporting our company’s long-term success.

It is also critical to meeting the shared challenge that the world faces: how to provide the energy required for economic growth and improved standards of living while protecting the environment. This challenge is acute because oil and natural gas reserves are often located in remote and sensitive regions. To develop these resources while respecting the local environments and communities in which they are found, we must employ the highest industry safety, environmental, and social standards. For example, our project in Papua New Guinea traverses areas requiring careful environmental and cultural planning. As you will read in this report, we are conducting social and environmental surveys in that country and are adapting our project activities accordingly.

To meet growing global energy demand, society will increasingly rely upon new ways to produce resources. One example is Canada’s oil sands—the second largest oil reserves in the world. Investments in the development and deployment of improved technologies for extraction and transport of this valuable resource are critical. And when done successfully, these technologies can minimize impacts to the environment. Natural gas is another example. Vast amounts of natural gas are located in shale formations around the world. By combining technology with operational excellence, we can safely unlock these supplies for the benefit of this generation and the next. We recognize that there are multiple viewpoints on the appropriate production and use of these resources—as there are with all energy sources—and we are committed to constructive engagement with our stakeholders on these issues.

2010 was a year of significant challenge for the energy industry. We know that the confidence of stakeholders is critical to the industry’s ability to operate and to be successful. From ExxonMobil’s perspective, we are committed to maintaining this confidence by continuing to operate safely, responsibly, and in a manner that promotes the long-term economic, environmental, and social health of our communities.

We hope you find our 2010 Corporate Citizenship Report useful in understanding how ExxonMobil addresses challenges in these important areas. We welcome your comments.

Rex W. Tillerson
Chairman and CEO