The International Energy Agency (IEA) released the Global Methane Tracker 2024.
Key findings
- Methane emissions from fuel use in 2023 were close to being the highest ever at 120 million tonnes (Mt). This is a small rise compared to 2022. While a further 10 Mt came from bioenergy – largely stemming from the traditional use of biomass.
- Of the 120 Mt of methane that escaped into the atmosphere, around 80 Mt came from the top 10 emitter countries.
- The United States, being the largest emitter of methane from oil and gas operations, topped the list, followed by Russia.
- Satellite data showed that large methane emissions rose by more than 50 per cent in 2023 compared to 2022.
- More than 5 Mt was traced back to major fossil fuel leaks around the world. This included a major well blowout in Kazakhstan, which began on June 9, 2023 and continued for more than 200 days.
- The world needs to slash methane emissions from fossil fuels by 75 per cent by 2030 to achieve the Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to 1.5°C. The IEA estimated that this goal would require about $170 billion in spending. This is less than 5 per cent of the income generated by the fossil fuel industry in 2023.
