Massive LNG consumers and producers to tighten methane monitoring

Japan, the US, the EU, Australia and South Korea have agreed the creation of a mechanism for monitoring methane emissions that may deliver collectively among the world’s largest consumers and producers of liquefied pure fuel to fight world warming.

Folks immediately concerned within the discussions stated the public-private initiative would contain establishing a database of real-time methane air pollution knowledge on particular person LNG initiatives, a transfer backers hope will speed up the discount of emissions of the potent world warming fuel. 

In a joint assertion, the 4 international locations and the EU will affirm the significance of “transparency for methane emissions knowledge within the fossil vitality sector” and specific help for “accelerated methane discount within the LNG worth chain”.

The initiative comes after world fossil gas business emissions of methane elevated to a near-record in 2022.

This was regardless of the so-called world methane pledge signed by greater than 100 international locations at a UN local weather summit in 2021. Massive emitters together with China, Russia and India didn’t signal the settlement, which was spearheaded by the US and EU. US local weather envoy John Kerry, who’s in China for local weather talks this week, has lengthy pressed Beijing to strengthen its dedication to decreasing methane emissions.

The workforce behind the UN COP28 local weather summit within the UAE this 12 months can be making a push for “near-zero” methane emissions within the oil and fuel business by 2030. 

Methane is the principle element of pure fuel and accounts for about 30 per cent of the worldwide temperature rise because the industrial revolution, with the vitality business making up a couple of third of human-induced methane emissions, second solely to agriculture. The emissions end result primarily from flaring — the burning of extra fuel — and leakage.

Slicing methane emissions is regarded by scientists as among the many most cost-effective and quickest methods to sort out world local weather change, because the fuel generates extra warming than carbon dioxide however is shorter-lived.

The methane database was proposed by Japan, chair of this 12 months’s G7 summit and one of many world’s largest importers of LNG. Tokyo has beforehand been criticised by local weather activists for opposing a world settlement for the phaseout of fossil fuels and for continued funding of recent abroad fuel initiatives. 

The brand new initiative — referred to as the “coalition for LNG emission abatement in the direction of internet zero” (CLEAN) — is about to be introduced on Tuesday at an LNG convention in Tokyo co-hosted by the Worldwide Vitality Company, the individuals concerned within the discussions stated.

Japan’s Jera and South Korea’s Kogas, two of the world’s largest LNG consumers, will ask main producers to supply fundamental knowledge on emissions akin to quantity and depth in addition to discount targets and measures being taken. Participation can be voluntary and the outcomes can be disclosed by the government-backed Japan Group for Metals and Vitality Safety, often called Jogmec. 

There may be already a reporting framework for methane air pollution led by the UN Setting Programme’s Oil and Gasoline Methane Partnership 2.0. 

However Japanese officers stated the prevailing database doesn’t present project-based methane emissions and solely company-level whole emissions. They stated there’s additionally not sufficient knowledge particular to LNG manufacturing and measuring and disclosure strategies are too inconsistent.

Tokyo’s effort was backed by the European Fee and the US, the place Joe Biden’s administration has proposed fines on methane leaks as a key a part of its battle to chop greenhouse fuel emissions. The oil and fuel business has objected to the proposed US guidelines, which might permit personal teams to observe and report leaks.

Japanese officers are relying on stress from Jera and Kogas to incentivise LNG suppliers to behave. Jogmec additionally hopes to deliver firms on board by selling initiatives with the bottom methane emission depth on its web site, whereas promoting Japanese know-how to detect or cut back methane leaks.