GIE and MARCOGAZ published the “Report on Potential ways the gas industry can contribute to the reduction of methane emissions”

July 1, 2019

While the efforts of the European Union (EU) to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) impact of its energy system is focused on mitigating carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, regulation (EU) 2018/1999 on the Governance of the EU requires the European Commission (EC) to propose an EU strategic plan for methane. This will become an integral part of an EU long-term climate strategy aiming to achieve the 1.5°C target by 2050.

To this end, the Directorate General for Energy of the EC invited GIE and MARCOGAZ to investigate the potential ways that the gas industry can contribute to the reduction of methane emissions and to report their findings at the 32nd Madrid Forum in June 2019.

Following to the request, GIE and MARCOGAZ conducted an industry-wide study, with contributions from representatives of the entire gas value chain from exploration and production through to utilisation, including biomethane.

Methane emissions management is a top priority for the European gas industry. Preventing and mitigating methane emissions has long been a safety requirement and avoidance of methane emissions is considered an opportunity to actively contribute to short-term mitigation of climate change.

The report provides an overview of the status of methane emissions in the EU gas sector and the actions undertaken by the gas industry until now while also containing information on ongoing initiatives and several proposed commitments for future actions of the industry.

The report was welcomed by the Commission and was discussed at the Forum. Part of the next steps for GIE and MARCOGAZ are to share the report findings via a series of dissemination activities.

Managing the emissions across the gas value chain will enable the role of natural gas and renewable gases in the future energy mix by (i) helping governments achieve their climate goals, (ii) instilling stakeholder confidence with respect to the environmental value of gas and (iii) providing long-term predictability within the climate change debate to allow industrial planning and investment.

The report is available for download at:
https://www.gie.eu/publications/methane-emission/methane-emissions-report/.

Methane Emissions Glossary – by IOGP / IPIECA / GIE / MARCOGAZ

Note to editors

Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) is an association representing the interests of gas infrastructure operators active in gas transmission, storage and LNG regasification. GIE is a trusted partner of European institutions, regulatory bodies and industry stakeholders. It is based in Brussels, the heart of European policymaking.

GIE currently represents 70 member companies from 26 countries. Its internal structure has three columns corresponding to the three types of infrastructure activities represented: GTE (Gas Transmission Europe), GSE (Gas Storage Europe) and GLE (Gas LNG Europe), all of which fall under the umbrella of GIE. This structure allows member companies to speak with one voice on infrastructure topics as well as to build positions on column-specific issues. To find out more about GIE’s structure and activities, please visit the website at www.gie.eu .