Energy sector's methane emissions near record in 2023

STORY: Methane emissions from the energy sector remained near a record high in 2023.

That's according to a report by the International Energy Agency published on Wednesday.

The potent greenhouse gas is responsible for roughly a third of the rise in global temperatures since the industrial revolution.

Christophe McGlade is the agency's head of energy supply.

"One of the key things that we found was that last year, in 2023, we saw an increase in the level of methane emissions coming from fossil fuels. It's very bad news for climate change."

The IEA says production and use of fossil fuels put more than 120 million metric tonnes of methane into the atmosphere last year – a slight rise over 2022.

Large methane plumes from leaky fossil fuel infrastructure jumped by 50% in 2023 compared with 2022.

At last year's United Nations climate summit in Dubai, nearly 200 countries agreed to rapidly and substantially cut methane emissions.

Dozens of oil companies have also voluntarily committed to reduce emissions.

But countries and companies are still significantly under-reporting the extent of their oil and gas methane emissions compared with the IEA's latest estimate.

The IEA says new satellites could help close that gap.

"Two big things that we hope to see in 2024, first of all, is more transparency. New satellites going up into orbit are looking specifically at methane emissions. The other thing is that we will start to see these pledges, we will start to see these policies coming through. And that means that 2024 should mark a turning point in our action, in our efforts to reduce methane emissions going forward."