Gas production, infrastructure operators and technical associations published first common industry guidelines to help companies set methane emission reduction targets as a complement to mitigation strategies, reports Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE), the association representing the interests of European gas infrastructure operators.
Reducing methane emissions contributes to decarbonising Europe’s energy system and put the European Union on track to achieve its objective of climate neutrality by 2050.
Together with operational measures to effectively manage methane emissions, the establishment of companies’ voluntary emissions reduction targets can help them set a clear and measurable objective against which to assess their progress.
The guidelines identify in a comprehensive manner the key elements of the process to establish a target and also address how to keep track of progress once a target is set. They also give an overview of the industry’s achievements so far in this field.
“This document is the fruit of an excellent collaboration exercise across the value chain,” commented Francisco de la Flor, board member of GIE and MARCOGAZ, the Technical Association of the European Natural Gas. “A significant number of European gas companies have targets in place and some of those who don’t are willing to do so as well. We encourage our members and all gas value chain actors who are considering to establish methane emission reduction targets to do so based on these technical guidelines.”
Setting voluntary targets for methane emissions has been a contributing factor for many of them. Company-specific targets are listed in the report Potential ways of the gas industry can contribute to the reduction of methane emissions which also gives an overview of ongoing industry initiatives.
“Expectations on our industry are high, and we’re proud to see the way the whole value chain has stepped up,” added François-Régis Mouton, regional director Europe at the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP). “We hope these guidelines will encourage even more companies to join this effort and help further strengthen the environmental credentials of natural gas.”
