Energy sector’s methane emissions could fall on tighter rules and Cop28 pledges, IEA says

Methane emissions from the energy sector stayed close to record levels last year but recent regulations and new pledges made at the Cop28 climate summit could change the trend, the International Energy Agency has said.

The production and use of fossil fuels resulted in about 120 million tonnes of methane emissions last year, a small rise from 2022, the agency said in its Global Methane Tracker report.

Another 10 million tonnes came from bioenergy, mostly from the use of biomass for activities such as cooking.

“A 75 per cent cut in methane emissions from fossil fuels by 2030 is imperative to stop the planet from warming to a dangerous level,” said IEA executive director Fatih Birol on

Wednesday. “I am encouraged by the momentum we’ve seen in recent months, which our analysis shows could make an enormous and immediate difference in the world’s fight against climate change.”

Methane, a greenhouse gas, has a short-term warming potential more than 80 times greater than carbon dioxide. After carbon dioxide emissions, methane is the second-largest contributor to climate change.

Climate experts consider reducing the international output of methane emissions as the most effective and least disruptive way to slow the increase in global temperatures over the next few decades.

The agency said the top 10 emitting countries were responsible for about 80 million tonnes of methane emissions from fossil fuels last year, representing two thirds of the global total. The US – the top oil and gas producer – was the largest emitter from oil and gas operations, closely followed by Russia. China was the highest emitter in the coal sector.

Satellites identified a “substantial” increase in fossil fuel leaks last year, compared with 2022, with more than five million tonnes of emissions detected, including from a well blowout in Kazakhstan that went on for more than 200 days, the agency said.

Governments and independent climate-tracking bodies have been relying on satellites to detect methane releases.

In the next few years, several new satellites with significantly improved resolutions are scheduled to be launched. MethaneSat, a satellite backed by Google and the Environmental Defence Fund group, was launched this month to pinpoint oil and gas industry methane leaks from space.