The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) which consists of 12 global oil and gas majors representing around 30% of the worlds total oil and gas production, has launched the Aiming for Zero Methane Emissions Initiative
The initiative calls for an all-in approach that treats oil and gas methane emissions as seriously as the industry already treats safety: aiming for zero and striving to do what is needed to get there. Signatories to Aiming for Zero Methane Emissions Initiative believe that virtually all methane emissions from the industry can and should be avoided, building on the following:
1. Striving to reach near zero methane emissions from their operated oil and gas assets by 2030, and encouraging our partners to achieve similar results.
2. Putting in place all reasonable means to avoid methane venting and flaring, and to repair detected leaks, while preserving the safety of people and the integrity of operations.
3. Reporting annually and transparently on their methane emissions.
4. As technology evolves, deploying more monitoring and measurement technologies, and introducing new solutions to avoid methane emissions.
5. Supporting the implementation of sound regulations to tackle methane emissions and encouraging governments to include methane emissions reduction targets as part of their climate strategies.
This leadership initiative supplements important multi-stakeholder initiatives, such as the Methane Guiding Principles, the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership 2.0 and the Global Methane Alliance.
OGCI has already taken significant action to reduce methane emissions, setting targets, developing and deploying technologies and participating in multi-stakeholder initiatives to raise awareness and improve practices. The member companies have reported collective progress on methane since 2017 and have reduced their aggregate absolute methane emissions by more than 30% in the last five years.
OGCI remains committed to its methane intensity target of well below 0.20% by 2025 and will be reviewing its shared targets for 2025 and onwards, to account for this new initiative and its new strategy launched in September 2021.
"We recognise that eliminating methane emissions from the upstream oil and gas industry represents one of the best short-term opportunities for contributing to climate change mitigation and for advancing the goals of the Paris agreement," said OGCI Chair, Bob Dudley. "The time has come for us to go further, and we believe that the oil and gas industry can and should lead this effort."
