A Royal Dutch Shell platform Eddie Seal | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Global oil markets are as lubricated with supply as ever. That, however, hasn't stopped major oil companies from testing an unusual energy production strategy—protecting the environment from carbon emissions. With varying degrees of success over the years, Big Oil has tried—but mostly failed—to bolster its green credentials even as it pumps more fossil fuels. Royal Dutch Shell is the latest example of how oil majors are trying to strike an environmentally friendly pose. In a speech at Columbia University in New York last week, CEO Ben van Beurden added his voice to the growing chorus of those who think the U.S. ought to export its burgeoning oil bounty. Read MoreFrom Seoul to Mexico City, pressure mounts to ease US oil export ban Yet van Beurden devoted a surprising amount of time to addressing what he termed "the real and current threat of climate change," and he promoted Shell's own initiatives to reduce carbon emissions. The CEO implied that oil companies and conservationists could find common ground in a "skewed global debate" about the environment and oil production.



"Global companies like Shell have a responsibility to speak up," about what van Beurden called "the potentially devastating effects of climate change." He backed growth in renewables, even as he acknowledged they were not yet sufficient to satisfy all the globe's energy demands. To be certain, Shell remains devoted to pumping oil: the company has been embroiled in a regulatory tussle over its $4.5 billion effort to drill in the Alaskan Arctic. Simultaneously, Shell has taken a bath on efforts to tap the U.S. shale boom. Yet by giving such prominence to environmental concerns, Shell's efforts could be seen as either a sincere move to diversify away from oil—or a public relations campaign to neutralize opponents. In a sign of its commitment to curbing carbon dioxide after jettisoning its own investments in the solar sector, Shell is now building a carbon capture and storage plant in Scotland.