BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 12. The IEA will again release country-by-country and sector-by-sector data next March to compare reported figures with actual emissions recorded by our global methane tracker, the executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol said during the COP29 Methane and Greenhouse Gas Summit, Trend reports.
“The IEA maintains a global tracker of methane emissions. We track data by country, by company, by their stated targets, and by reality. From that perspective, focusing on methane seems less challenging than reducing carbon dioxide emissions. Two reasons for this. First, from a technological point of view. Reducing, or better yet, eliminating methane emissions, is largely a matter of ensuring that pipelines are well sealed. Unlike more complex technologies such as carbon capture, which are also important but require major technological solutions, the methane challenge is more accessible. It can be solved using existing technologies with proper planning,” he said.
According to him, secondly, it is more cost-effective because reducing emissions allows for the preservation of natural resources that can be sold, bringing additional profit.
“From these perspectives, reducing methane emissions is really less difficult. So I am very pleased that we have also set a target for decarbonization of the oil and gas sector. Our research shows that methane emissions can be significantly reduced if we meet our stated commitments. In March, we will again publish updated data for each country and each sector. This will allow us to assess what has been pledged and what actual emissions are being recorded by our global methane tracker. We very much hope that the submitted and forthcoming Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) will include all greenhouse gases, including methane, within the Paris Climate Agreement targets,” he added.
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