By Moses Patience Chat
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has recommended five pathways that oil and gas companies and operators can adopt in order to reduce emissions from their operations.
This was contained in its report for May 2023 on “Emissions from Oil and Gas Operations in Net Zero Transitions.”
The pathways recommend by IEA include tackling methane emissions, eliminating all non-emergency flaring, electrifying upstream facilities with low-emissions electricity, equipping oil and gas processes with carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) and, finally, expanding the use of low-emission electrolysis hydrogen in refineries.
Latest data from the Agency revealed that the oil and gas industry was directly responsible for nearly 15% of energy greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, adding that around $600 billion in upfront spending is required over the period to 2030 to achieve the full 50% reduction in emissions intensity of oil and gas operations.
The Agency further explained that these emissions are not just from production processes, but crude oil, oil products, and natural gas are often transported over long distances, both by pipeline and ship, and these processes are also an important source of GHG emissions.
It reiterated that a consistent approach is needed to monitor, report, and verify emissions from oil and gas activities. The approach, IEA said, should be based on robust measurements to improve the accuracy, availability, and transparency of emissions data.