Shell oil rig

Major oil and gas companies join program to cut methane emissions

62 oil and gas companies from around the world signed on to a UN-led partnership aimed at bolstering monitoring and reductions of the potent climate-warming gas.

Dozens of the top oil and gas companies in the world—including Shell, BP and Total—agreed this week to better track and reduce their methane emissions.


The initiative—called the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership and led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the European Commission and Environmental Defense Fund—was launched in 2014 as a voluntary effort to reduce methane emissions from oil and gas. This week that partnership was updated—now the 62 participating companies will look beyond their own methane emissions and include any joint venture emissions, as well as emissions from transportation and downstream refining that companies could have potentially left out of reporting.

"Our aim is to bring companies to report their emissions from all assets at an unprecedented level of accuracy and granularity," Manfredi Caltagirone, a UNEP program management officer, told EHN, "because you cannot manage what you do not measure."

Across the globe, about 596 million tons of methane are emitted a year, according to the Global Carbon Project, which tracks greenhouse gas emissions. There are natural methane emissions from sources such as wetlands, lakes, volcanoes and permafrost, but about 60 percent comes from human activities. While agriculture is the top human-caused source of methane, fossil fuels is second.

In reducing oil and gas methane—which is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period as a greenhouse gas—the program's goal is to reduce the oil and gas industry's methane emissions by 45 percent by 2025, and by 60 to 75 percent by 2030.

Reductions would also have more immediate positive impacts, as methane is also a precursor to harmful ozone levels.

"Reducing methane emissions is a crucial effort in the industry's decarbonization pathway. As a factor on which we can have an immediate and concrete positive impact, [the update framework] offers an internationally recognized blueprint to companies across our industry willing to make improvements in their emission reductions in all phases of the value chain," said Claudio Descalzi, Chief Executive Officer of the energy company ENI, in a statement.

Collaborative programs are key to solving these climate issues, Tiy Chung, a communications officer at UNEP, told EHN. The oil and gas industry can be quite fragmented, which "makes it harder for large companies and agencies to enforce policies and regulations down the line." But through partnership, hopefully these obstacles can be surmounted.

Proponents of the program say cutting methane emissions is a low-hanging fruit in the global fight against climate change. The International Energy Agency estimates about three-quarters of existing methane emissions could be reduced with existing technology—and if the energy industry could reach a 90 percent reduction in emissions, it would reduce the estimated increase in Earth's temperature by 2050 by 2 degrees Celsius.

The issue of methane emissions is not necessarily an issue of innovation or technology, said Caltagirone. Rather, this is an issue of willingness and momentum. And it's an initiative that makes sense for everyone: "It creates jobs and it creates action on climate. So it's both good for the climate and it provides revenues."

The updated framework is designed to allow governments, investors, and the public to better track companies' methane emissions. While the program is voluntary, the European Union has signaled it plans to hold companies to a similar standard on measurement, reporting and reduction with new legislation.

"Thanks to the 62 companies for committing to measure, report and reduce pollution from their core operations and joint ventures. This will be the basis for robust standards in Europe, and beyond, that ensure the oil industry takes the practical actions urgently needed for our climate," said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund, in a statement.

Banner photo: Shell Oil drilling platform (Credit: Thomas Doyle/flickr)

A weather research airplane.

Trump budget plan threatens NASA and NOAA climate programs with severe funding cuts

A sweeping White House proposal would slash science budgets at NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, dismantling key climate research efforts and prompting warnings from former agency officials about national security and economic risks.

Gabrielle Canon reports for The Guardian.

Keep reading...Show less
Senator Whitehouse & climate change

Senator Whitehouse puts climate change on budget committee’s agenda

For more than a decade, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse gave daily warnings about the mounting threat of climate change. Now he has a powerful new perch.
Female scientist holding up a beaker of green liquid to get a close look.

Trump administration halts EPA science board meeting as agency faces major research cuts

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency canceled a key science advisory board meeting without explanation, raising concerns amid broader efforts to dismantle its research division and lay off scientists.

Liza Gross reports for Inside Climate News.

Keep reading...Show less
Maersk Line cargo ship loaded with containers on body of water during daytime.

Global shipping faces first international emissions fee under new climate agreement

A group of major shipping nations agreed Friday to impose a global fee on greenhouse gas emissions from ships, setting the stage for a 2027 launch despite resistance from the U.S. and some large maritime economies.

Jennifer McDermott and Sibi Arasu report for The Associated Press.

Keep reading...Show less
A metal capacitor with coiled copper wire next to it.

China blocks rare earth exports, rattling global tech and defense sectors

China has halted exports of heavy rare earth metals and magnets vital to electric vehicles, defense systems and consumer electronics, escalating trade tensions following President Trump’s latest round of tariffs.

Keith Bradsher reports for The New York Times.

Keep reading...Show less
A man in an orange safety helmet and vest working on a power line.

Britain races to overhaul power grid for the clean energy era

A massive underground tunneling effort and £35 billion in planned upgrades signal Britain’s urgent push to modernize its electricity grid for renewable energy and digital growth.

Stanley Reed reports for The New York Times.

Keep reading...Show less
A washing machine in a laundry room.

Trump sidesteps legal limits in bid to gut appliance energy rules

Donald Trump’s second-term strategy to dismantle appliance efficiency standards hinges on canceling a crucial government contract, sowing confusion among manufacturers, regulators, and environmental advocates.

Peter Elkind reports for ProPublica.

Keep reading...Show less
An aerial view of a winding road in the desert.

Big tech’s water-guzzling data centers are draining some of the world’s driest regions

Amazon, Google, and Microsoft are expanding data centers in areas already struggling with drought, raising concerns about their use of local water supplies for cooling massive server farms.

Luke Barratt and Costanza Gambarini report for The Guardian.

Keep reading...Show less
From our Newsroom
Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro speaks with the state flag and American flag behind him.

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

silhouette of people holding hands by a lake at sunset

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

wildfire retardants being sprayed by plane

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.

People  sitting in an outdoors table working on a big sign.

Op-ed: Why funding for the environmental justice movement must be anti-racist

We must prioritize minority-serving institutions, BIPOC-led organizations and researchers to lead environmental justice efforts.

joe biden

Biden finalizes long-awaited hydrogen tax credits ahead of Trump presidency

Responses to the new rules have been mixed, and environmental advocates worry that Trump could undermine them.

Op-ed: Toxic prisons teach us that environmental justice needs abolition

Op-ed: Toxic prisons teach us that environmental justice needs abolition

Prisons, jails and detention centers are placed in locations where environmental hazards such as toxic landfills, floods and extreme heat are the norm.

Stay informed: sign up for The Daily Climate newsletter
Top news on climate impacts, solutions, politics, drivers. Delivered to your inbox week days.