Advertising firms are increasingly shy about their work for the fossil fuel industry. But now, thanks to insider sources and documents from global communications holding company Interpublic Group (IPG), DeSmog can reveal the team of ad, PR, and lobbying agencies that help shape the image of Saudi Aramco — the world’s biggest oil company.

Credit: Kathryne Clare, TJ Jordan

Current and former IPG employees — who declined to be named for fear of professional repercussions — said they believed the firm’s work for Saudi Aramco was in breach of a company policy to avoid projects that could “extend the life of fossil fuels” by influencing policymaking.

As part of this investigation, DeSmog also obtained dozens of documents that opened a rare window into the network of communications agencies employed by fossil fuel giants like Aramco to protect their reputations and deflect pressure to reduce their climate impact.

IPG is headquartered in New York, but operates as a holding company, owning dozens of subsidiary advertising and public relations agencies around the world. Together, IPG’s agencies offer a huge range of services to boost the brands of major clients such as MasterCard and L’Oréal, from creating ads and designing logos, to managing corporate reputations and lobbying governments.

IPG agencies began working with Aramco in at least 2012, according to DeSmog research. Today, up to 200 staff from 15 of its agencies — mostly based in central London — work for Aramco, according to company sources and emails.

This group of staff are known internally as “Well7”, according to the emails — a reference to the Dammam No.7 oil well, the site where commercial quantities of oil were first discovered in Saudi Arabia in 1938. Several employees said the work of Well7 is intentionally not promoted internally or externally — unlike campaigns for other major brands — because it might draw criticism from other staff or climate and human rights campaigners.

Although several other agencies not owned by IPG work for Aramco, IPG is Aramco’s main communications partner.

Using employee testimony, internal documents, and information published online by the companies, DeSmog has now mapped the IPG agencies that make up Well7.

IPG did not respond to a request for comment. Aramco declined to comment.