Energy agency chief: 'No excuse' for high methane emissions
CTV
The International Energy Agency on Tuesday accused fossil fuel industries of doing too little to curb methane emissions and undermining global climate goals to limit warming.
The International Energy Agency on Tuesday accused fossil fuel industries of doing too little to curb methane emissions and undermining global climate goals to limit warming.
Economic uncertainty, high energy prices and concerns over security of supply, which would have led to emissions cuts in 2022, were ineffective as methane emissions remained "stubbornly high," the report said.
"Methane cuts are among the cheapest options to limit near-term global warming," said IEA's executive director Fatih Birol. "There is just no excuse."
The IEA's annual Methane Gas Tracker found that 75% of methane emissions from the oil and gas sector can be reduced with far cheaper and readily available technologies.
Methane, which makes up natural gas, can escape into the air from oil and gas infrastructure. Fossil fuel companies may also flare or burn off excess gas that can release methane into the atmosphere.
The report slammed oil and gas majors' refusal to pay up the some $100 billion needed for technologies to spearhead the emissions cuts, which is less than 3% of the industry's record bumper profits made last year.
The report said that the energy sector accounts for around 40% of the total average methane emissions from human activity, second to agriculture, and is responsible for 135 million tons of methane released into the atmosphere last year.
