IEA Report: Methane emissions remain near record high in 2023

Despite efforts from the energy sector to address leaking infrastructure, methane emissions remained near a record high in 2023, according to a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Methane emissions from various human activities, including oil and natural gas production, agriculture, and landfills, contribute significantly to climate change.

The IEA report highlighted that the production and use of fossil fuels resulted in over 120 million metric tons of methane emissions in 2023, a slight increase compared to 2022. Additionally, large methane plumes from leaky fossil fuel infrastructure surged by 50% in 2023 compared to the previous year. One notable event was a well blowout in Kazakhstan, detected by satellites, which lasted over 200 days.

Despite commitments from over 150 countries since 2021 to reduce global methane emissions by at least 30% from 2020 levels by the end of the decade, methane emissions have hovered around 130 million metric tons since 2019, the year when the IEA began its Global Methane Tracker.