Companies responsible for around half of
global oil and gas production have near zero
methane target for 2030
Methane emissions and flaring are responsible for well over half of the total
greenhouse gas emissions associated with oil and gas operations. Reducing
these emissions is an imperative task for companies to contribute to net zero
transitions. It will also facilitate access to capital and markets, limit regulatory risks,
and address some concerns of civil society.
Over the past decade, several initiatives to cut methane emissions and flaring
have been announced by oil and gas companies. At the UN Secretary General’s
Climate Summit in 2014, some of the world’s largest oil and gas companies
established the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP). Following the launch
of the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) in 2014, companies in this group set
methane emissions reduction targets in 2017. Members of the OGCI announced
their aim to reach near zero methane emissions1 and zero routine flaring from
operated assets by 2030.

Several other companies have since joined this group or made other commitments
to act on methane and flaring, such as through the Methane Guiding Principles’
goal of continually reducing methane emissions, the China Oil and Gas Methane
Alliance’s aim of improving methane emissions control, and the World Bank’s Zero
Routine Flaring Initiative.

The OGDC launched at COP28 is the latest industry initiative on oil and gas
industry decarbonisation. Around 30 of the 54 companies that have joined the
OGDC so far have not previously engaged in other international initiatives to tackle
methane and flaring, including many National Oil Companies.

Source:https://www.iea.org/reports/turning-pledges-into-progress