Rapid methane reductions are critical to limit global warming in the near term, and more than 150 countries have signed the Global Methane Pledge—a collective agreement to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030. National policies and significant funding have been announced to support this ambitious initiative, yet there is a lag in credible data to inform and demonstrate progress.
The fossil fuel industry, which contributes 15–22% of the global methane budget, is expected to make rapid reductions. Under the International Energy Agency’s Net Zero by 2050 scenario, 75% of methane emissions from fossil fuel operations must be eliminated between 2020 and 2030. Global policy approaches to realize these reductions vary. For example, the United States, now the world’s largest exporter of liquified natural gas (LNG), recently finalized sweeping direct regulation across domestic oil and gas facilities and is now implementing a congressionally mandated methane emissions fee.
Conversely, the European Union imports 90% of its natural gas, and policymakers want to leverage the bloc’s purchasing power by compelling its gas suppliers to quantify and reduce their methane emissions. In November, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union reached a provisional agreement on methane legislation that will include new data requirements on oil, natural gas, and coal imports.
Brussels has outlined several stages to come on gas imports. Between now and 2026, EU gas importers will require their suppliers to detail their methane emissions monitoring and reporting, as well as leak detection and repair efforts. This information will contribute to a methane transparency database and “methane performance profiles” of supplier countries and potentially companies. By January 2027, gas suppliers must adhere to the same methane measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) standards as domestic producers, including emissions disclosures. By 2030, the European Union plans to implement a (yet to be determined) “maximum methane intensity value” for natural gas. It is possible that gas suppliers that fail to meet this standard will be subject to penalties, and there is an implicit threat that their longer-term access to the European Union market could be threatened if they fail to meet this import standard.
The availability of robust, measurement-informed emissions information across global supply chains is critical to the success of any target-based methane policy. Yet very few countries can provide robust data on emissions intensity across natural gas value chains. Even gas exporters seldom have comprehensive data to provide emission intensity estimates across natural gas supply chains.
European Union policymakers want to elevate the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP 2.0) as the solution to this problem. The OGMP 2.0 is a voluntary comprehensive, measurement-based international oil and gas methane emissions reporting framework administered by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). Its pragmatic theory of change is that equipping asset managers with high-quality data will spur credible emissions cuts. Member companies, which represent more than 40% of global oil and gas production, agree to annual corporatewide reporting of methane emissions from all operated and nonoperated assets with increasing granularity and accuracy.