Key Facts about Methane Emissions from Fossil Fuels
Explore facts from the fossil fuel sector and discover methane emissions sources, learn about their contributions to climate change, understand how emissions evolve over time and see opportunities to drive mitigation actions.
On this page, learn about
Underlying sources of methane
Driven by oil and gas, coal, and industrial processes
Emissions occur due to leaks, venting, flaring, and the release of methane trapped in coal seams during mining operations.
Global methane emissions sources – Fossil Fuels Sector
34% Global methane emissions from Fossil Fuels (range 33-35%)
-
18% Oil & Gas
-
13% Coal
-
1% Industrial Processes
Percentages of global total
| Source | % of Global Total | Featured Stat |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture | 40% — Global methane emissions from Agriculture (range 36-41%) | |
| Livestock | 32% | |
| Enteric Fermentation | 29% | |
| Manure Management | 3% | |
| Rice Cultivation | 9% | |
| Fossil Fuels | 34% — Global methane emissions from Fossil Fuels (range 33-35%) | |
| Oil & Gas | 18% | |
| Coal | 13% | |
| Industrial Processes | 1% | |
| Waste | 19% — Global methane emissions from Waste (range 17-21%) | |
| Wastewater | 12% | |
| Solid Waste | 10% |
EMISSIONS PROFILE BY SUB-SECTOR AND GEOGRAPHY
Where are fossil fuels methane emissions most prominent?
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit
Top methane emissions from Fossil Fuels in 2022
| Geography | Oil And Gas | Coal | Industrial Processes | Total (incl. Other) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oil And Gas (Mt) | % of sector total | Coal (Mt) | % of sector total | Industrial Processes (Mt) | % of sector total | Total (Mt) | % of sector total | |
| Asia | 21.1Mt | 16.8% | 42.5Mt | 34% | 1.8Mt | 1.4% | 65.3Mt | 52.3% |
| China | 4Mt | 3.2% | 26.3Mt | 21% | 0.9Mt | 0.7% | 31.2Mt | 25% |
| Indonesia | 1.2Mt | 1% | 6.7Mt | 5.3% | 0.1Mt | 0.1% | 7.9Mt | 6.3% |
| Russia | 7.2Mt | 5.8% | 3.7Mt | 3% | 0.2Mt | 0.1% | 11Mt | 8.8% |
| India | 0.7Mt | 0.6% | 2.5Mt | 2% | 0.3Mt | 0.3% | 3.5Mt | 2.8% |
| Middle East | 21.3Mt | 17% | 0Mt | 0% | 0.2Mt | 0.2% | 21.6Mt | 17.3% |
| Iran | 5.6Mt | 4.5% | 0Mt | 0% | 0.1Mt | 0.51% | 5.8Mt | 4.6% |
| Iraq | 4.8Mt | 3.8% | 0Mt | 0% | 0Mt | 0% | 4.8Mt | 3.8% |
| Africa | 9.7Mt | 7.8% | 5Mt | 4% | 0.2Mt | 0.1% | 14.9Mt | 11.9% |
| North America | 11.2Mt | 9% | 1.3Mt | 1.1% | 0.4Mt | 0.3% | 12.9Mt | 10.3% |
| United States | 9.2Mt | 7.3% | 1.3Mt | 1% | 0.3Mt | 0.2% | 10.7Mt | 8.6% |
| Central and South America | 4.3Mt | 3.5% | 0.9Mt | 0.7% | 0.3Mt | 0.2% | 5.5Mt | 4.4% |
| Europe | 2Mt | 1.6% | 0.8Mt | 0.6% | 0.3Mt | 0.2% | 3Mt | 2.4% |
| Other | 0.8Mt | 0.7% | 0.8Mt | 0.6% | 0.1Mt | 0.1% | 1.7Mt | 1.4% |
| Grand Total | 70.5Mt | 56.4% | 51.4Mt | 41.1% | 3.2Mt | 2.5% | 125Mt | 100% |
FOSSIL FUELS METHANE EMISSIONS TRENDS
Human-driven methane emissions have increased globally by more than 50% over the last fifty years
Averaging across models, emissions are projected to increase by 8% in energy (driven by increased demand for oil and gas in developing countries). These estimates assume implementation of existing policies and commitments, but do not include additional mitigation action. Although rising populations and incomes are the primary drivers of growth in methane emissions, energy increases in efficiency over time, especially as economies transition to renewable sources of energy.
{Data Visual}
Methane emissions in select countries and sectors over time
{DATA VISUAL}
Download materials to learn more
MITIGATION OPPORTUNITIES
Fossil fuels offer the highest mitigation potential
24-49% of 2030 emissions are mitigable at low (<$600/tonne CH4) or negative cost (<$O/ tonne CH4). Negative cost mitigation solutions, such as recovery and utilization of vented gas, can yield positive financial returns to the individual or company responsible for mitigating the methane. Up to 80% of oil and gas measures and up to 98% of coal measures could be implemented at negative or low-cost (<$600 per tonne of methane) by 2030.
Mitigatable emissions in 2030 for the fossil fuel sector estimated from the Global Methane Assessment (2021)
{DATA VISUAL}
Readily available measures could reduce emissions from oil and gas and from the coal sector by 2030
These reductions can be accomplished through leak detection and repair, recovery and utilization of vented gas, pre-mining degasification, and flooding abandoned mines Significant progress has already been made toward commitments to reducing fossil fuel methane emissions. At COP 29 in the United Arab Emirates, 50 companies responsible for 40% of global oil production agreed to limit methane pollution to just 0.2% in their production operations by 2030.
