Global gas flaring climbed to its highest level in 17 years in 2024, even as methane emissions from the oil and gas sector inched lower, as governments and companies struggled to build enough momentum to tackle this major source of global emissions.
Against this backdrop, the Global Flaring and Methane Reduction (GFMR) Partnership, launched by the World Bank at COP28 in late 2023, has since initiated or advanced programmes in 17 countries, the partnership said in its progress report for the year ending 30 June, unveiled at this year’s ADIPEC conference in Abu Dhabi. Together, these countries account for more than a quarter of global methane emissions from oil and gas operations and nearly two-fifths of flaring, the partnership said.
Flared volumes rose to 151bcm in 2024, according to the World Banks’ Global Gas Flaring Tracker, marking the highest level since 2007 and equivalent to Africa’s annual gas consumption. This resulted in 389mt CO₂e of emissions, including 46mt in unburned methane. Methane emissions from the oil and gas sector totalled around 70mt in 2024, according to the IEA, down from 78mt the previous year but remaining a major contributor to short-term warming due to methane’s high potency as a greenhouse gas over a 20-year period.
Beyond environmental considerations, the World Bank stresses the loss of usable energy and therefore economic value that flaring and methane emissions represent. Capturing and utilising more of this gas, rather than burning it off or allowing it to escape into the atmosphere, could improve energy access and energy security, particularly in developing, energy-poor countries.
To fund its work, GFMR had attracted $234m in pledged financial contributions as of the end of June from its partners, which include governments such as Norway and the US and major oil companies such as BP and Shell.
In its progress report, GFMR provided a breakdown of its activities across the countries it is working in.
Sub-Saharan Africa
GFMR is working with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission to establish a national methane emissions baseline and to strengthen the latter’s capacity to monitor, report and verify emissions. It has provided targeted training towards this end, as well as to support future abatement efforts, and is exploring abatement projects with state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Co. (NNPC).
Nigeria is pushing to expand gas utilisation to support increased LNG exports and use more gas at home by expanding its role as a fuel for cooking, heating and power as well as using it as feedstock for petrochemicals production.
Although outside GFMR’s core project list, it contributed indirectly to reforms in both Mauritania and neighbouring Senegal. In Mauritania, GFMR recommendations informed new flaring, venting and fugitive emissions regulations approved in June. In Senegal, earlier World Bank-supported work ensured flaring and venting provisions were incorporated into the country’s 2023 environmental law.
The two countries entered the global gas market with the launch of their shared Greater Tortue Ahmeyim LNG project earlier this year. LNG buyers are increasingly scrutinising the methane intensity of the cargoes they procure—particularly in the EU, which is set to introduce mandatory reporting standards from 2028.
East Asia and the Pacific
Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) emit around 320,000t/yr of methane from oil and gas operations, according to GFMR, although an estimated four-fifths of those emissions could be eliminated at a net negative cost.
Working through the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE), GFMR said it helped build the region’s first methane emissions dashboard and establish a methane baseline for all ten member states. In June, GFMR and ACE also launched the Methane Management Roadmap for Oil and Gas in ASEAN, which includes marginal abatement cost curves and policy recommendations. GFMR said it provided technical assistance to help ACE design and implement multi-country programmes to reduce emissions and align these efforts with international standards.
Indonesian NOC Pertamina committed to the World Bank’s Zero Routine Flaring (ZRF) initiative last year and requested GFMR assistance soon after. GFMR has initiated work on a flaring and methane reduction roadmap, due for completion this year, and held a project identification workshop with more than 70 Pertamina staff in June.
The roadmap will identify and prioritise abatement projects across the company’s upstream and midstream assets, GFMR said. It hopes to select a project in the 2026 financial year and support leak detection and repair (LDAR) campaigns.
Engagement with Vietnam’s state oil company, PetroVietnam, remains at an early stage, GFMR said. Discussions have focused on assessing venting and methane emissions from the PM3 Commercial Arrangement Area, a high-CO₂ offshore field jointly managed with Malaysia’s Petronas. A potential prefeasibility study would establish flaring and venting baselines, integrate methane management and reduction scenarios, and evaluate feasible abatement options.
Central Asia
Central Asia is saddled with aged oil and gas infrastructure, resulting in significant methane emissions.
Turkmenistan, one of the world’s largest methane emitters, is developing a national measurement, monitoring, reporting and verification (MMRV) system with GFMR assistance. GFMR is also designing a pilot LDAR programme with state-owned Turkmengas.
Looking ahead, GFMR said it would continue a programme to build up Turkmenistan’s capacity to take action on its methane emissions. It is also preparing an emissions survey at facilities owned by Turkmengas, supporting the state gas company in its LDAR work. GFMR has provided grants to implement the national MMRV system and establish a facility for funding gas leak repairs. These projects should start in early 2026 and continue for three years.
Uzbekistan’s gas sector emits 1.5bcm/yr of methane. Uztransgaz, Uzbekistan’s state gas transmission operator, has an estimated 700mcm of unaccounted-for gas across its network each year, of which half is understood to be due to technical losses.
GFMR’s ground-based surveys across six facilities identified 54,000t/yr of methane emissions, and early repairs by the operator have already reduced emissions by 16,000t/yr, or 24mcm of gas. The partnership plans to survey all Uztransgaz’ remaining facilities by the end of this year. It also aims to prepare the company to carry out LDAR campaigns in line with OGMP 2.0 standards.
GFMR has begun a revolving methane leak repair facility for Uztransgaz, to be financed with catalytic grant funding and sustained through reinvested gas-savings. Repairs are set to begin by year-end and continue for three years.
Azerigas, Azerbaijan’s state gas distribution company, operates an ageing network with around 160mcm of annual gas losses. GFMR is preparing a grant-funded LDAR facility, modelled on the programme in Uzbekistan, aiming to repair leaks and reinvest savings into continued system upgrades. Emissions reductions could reach 85,000t/yr of methane by 2035, according to GFMR.
Kazakhstan’s ecology ministry has requested GFMR support for developing a national MMRV system for methane emissions. GFMR conducted scoping missions in the reviewed year and plans a capacity-building programme, paving the way for creating a national emissions database that will be critical for Kazakhstan to fulfill its commitments under the Global Methane Pledge, which requires the country to cut its methane emissions by 30% by 2030 versus the 2020 level. An accurate database is a precursor to introducing mandatory emission reduction targets.
GFMR expects to provide grant funding to the Kazakh government in the future to develop the database.
Latin America and the Caribbean
GFMR is helping Brazil’s oil regulator the ANP adopt best regulatory practices for methane emissions, including through a comparative study of regulations in Canada, the EU and the UK. It is also assisting the ANP in improving methane emission systems and strengthening leak detection capabilities. A leak detection and quantification campaign will start in early 2026 at three key upstream assets: Roncador, Pilar and Leste de Urucu. Data will be analysed with the Methane Emissions Technology Evaluation Centre at Colorado State University, aiming to verify inventories and identify 2–3mt CO₂e of abatement potential annually.
Mexico’s Pemex is under financial strain, limiting its ability to reduce flaring and venting. GFMR plans to provide the NOC with liquidity to support projects with significant abatement potential that have stalled.
Pemex has identified 35 priority flaring and methane-reduction projects and is collaborating with GFMR on project screening, site visits and vent-gas assessments. Early analysis suggests two flaring abatement projects could cut up to 10t CO₂e by 2035, with further opportunities under evaluation.
Pemex formally endorsed the 2030 ZRF initiative in April, and GFMR is developing pilot projects, including for vent-gas recovery, at a compressor station in Tabasco state.
Middle East and North Africa
GFMR said it was supporting intergovernmental group the East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF) in its push to align decarbonisation frameworks across its member states. For the year ending 30 June, the partnership completed the business case and financial feasibility assessment for a regional carbon intensity certification mechanism, aimed at preparing exporters for EU methane regulations. GFMR is also helping EMGF establish a project development unit to identify and assess flaring and methane-abatement projects across the region.
GFMR also continued its decarbonisation partnership with Egypt’s petroleum ministry, it said, completing project identification and launching procurement for prefeasibility studies. The ministry is looking to reduce the carbon intensity of oil and gas operations and improve the competitiveness of Egypt’s gas and LNG exports, GFMR said. Baseline assessments at 15 sites and five prefeasibility studies are expected by the end of June 2026.
Iraq’s updated climate commitments prioritise energy-sector emissions reductions, GFMR said, and the country’s oil ministry requested the partnership’s support in late 2024. Terms were agreed for methane detection using satellite and ground-based systems, identification of low-cost abatement opportunities and preparation of prefeasibility studies. The programme aims to identify 100,000–500,000t CO₂e of abatable emissions by 2026.
GFMR is in early discussions with Algeria’s Sonatrach to help abate the country’s estimated 7.9bcm of flared gas and 2.4mt of methane emissions. Both upstream and midstream flare-closure opportunities have been identified for evaluation.
Libya’s oil and gas sector emits an estimated 51mt CO₂e of methane annually and faces mounting competitive pressure due to its high emissions profile. GFMR began coordinating with the EU delegation to the country, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) to improve regulatory abatement initiatives with Libya’s National Oil Co. Looking ahead, GFMR will engage with Libya to assess abatement opportunities, launch prefeasibility studies for projects, continue improving policy and improve the detection, measurement, and reporting of methane and flaring emissions.
A World Bank-funded diagnostic in early 2024 found up to 723mcm of flared gas in Yemen could be captured for power, equivalent to nearly half the country’s total grid capacity. Yemen’s Ministry of Oil and Minerals requested prefeasibility support for flare gas-to-power projects, although security risks have delayed on-site assessments at the Marib and Shabwah gas fields. The goal is to evaluate the conditions of existing facilities and what investments are needed to capture flared and vented gas.
South Asia
Bangladesh’s Petrobangla faces unaccounted-for gas losses, according to GFMR, of 10–12%, valued at $1.5b annually, with 0.3–0.5mt of methane potentially leaking into the atmosphere. GFMR co-organised a capacity-building workshop in Dhaka in May 2025. Looking ahead, GFMR plans to support the monitoring and digital accounting of system losses, including with the use of an LDAR campaign across the distribution system. In June, a $500,000 GFMR grant was approved to fund methane reduction as part of a $350m World Bank lending package.
Almost half of Pakistan’s unaccounted-for gas losses are attributed to leaks within the gas transmission and distribution systems, according to GFMR. The partnership began working with the country’s gas network operators to develop a top-down national methane emissions inventory and identify major leaks in transmission and distribution networks. The work will feed into preparations for an investment programme aimed at reducing those unaccounted-for gas losses.
In March 2024, India’s ONGC sought GFMR support to improve facility-level inventories of emissions, conduct LDAR surveys and identify priority mitigation projects. In May that year, GFMR prepared terms of reference for a Bank-executed programme to compile methane and flaring inventories, carry out LDAR work, and assess cost-effective reduction options. The terms are waiting on ONGC board approval, after which implementation will begin. GFMR is also working with Assam Gas Company Limited to scope methane-loss reduction opportunities that may lead to future recipient-executed activities.
Joseph Murphy is senior gas analyst at Petroleum Economist. This article is taken from our Outlook 2026 report. To read Outlook 2026 in full, click here.
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