Methane emissions from the Oil and Gas Sector: an opportunity to reduce global warming in the short-term

Methane emissions are responsible for about 25% of current global warming and the oil and gas sector is one of the largest anthropogenic sources of methane. The IPCC, in its “Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5 degrees”, noted that emissions of Short-Lived Climate Pollutants like methane and black carbon need to be reduced by 35% or more by 2050 to stay below the 1.5 degrees target, while the International Energy Agency identified upstream methane emissions as one of the most important areas for addressing climate change in the energy sector in the near term.