BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 22. A rebound in flaring activity is likely this year as global fossil fuel demand increases with the relaxation of Covid-19-related restrictions, and supply remains tight due to sanctions on Russian fuel over the war in Ukraine, Trend reports with reference to Rystad Energy.
“Flaring represents about 30 percent of the total carbon dioxide emissions produced by the oil and gas industry, and the practice has come under increased scrutiny over its environmental impact in recent years. Even with the backdrop of the pandemic and supply decline, there are still signs that the latest improvements could be partially sustained,” reads a report released by Rystad Energy.
Many exploration and production (E&P) players have set ambitious targets to end flaring, and for many fields reducing flaring remains the first step on the abatement journey. Through satellite data estimation, Rystad Energy detects and tracks flaring activity globally for all oil and gas fields. Satellite analysis shows that global flaring reduction efforts have not seen any significant effect as flaring activity has remained relatively flat for the past 10 years. However, 2020 marked a step in the right direction, and the 2021 estimates suggest the trend is continuing.
“The shale sector's downward momentum of flaring activity is the most striking reduction in recent years. On a per barrel of oil equivalent (boe) basis, tight oil flaring has dropped by 60 percent from 2019 to 2021. Other onshore production flaring continues to stand out, with flaring intensity exceeding 7 kilograms of CO2 per boe in 2021. The other supply segments show very marginal, almost flat developments,” reads the report.
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