New satellite data shows a significant decline in natural gas flaring at oil production sites around the world in 2017, Kallanish Energy reports.
The decline was about 5% and came while global oil production grew by a half-percent. That 5% drop begins to reverse years of increases in global flaring that started in 2010.
The data reveals roughly 141 billion cubic meters (Bcm) of natural gas were flared in 2017, down from nearly 148 billion cubic meters in 2016.
Russia remains the world’s No.1 flaring country, with 19.9 Bcm flared. It was also the country with the biggest decline in flaring: from 22.4 Bcm in 2016, to 19.9 Bcm in 2017.
Venezuela and Mexico also reduced their flaring significantly in 2017. Oil production dipped 12% in Venezuela.
There were notable increases in gas flaring in 2017, in the U.S., Iran, Nigeria and Libya.
The United States flared roughly 9.5 Bcm, up 7% from 8.9 Bcm in 2016, as production from shale grew. It is ranked fourth for flaring behind Russia, Iraq, with 17.8 Bcm, and Iran, with 17.7 Bcm.
Between 3% and 5% of natural gas in the Permian Basin in West Texas and New Mexico is flared. Natural gas has also been flared in the past in the Bakken Shale in North Dakota and Montana.
The rest of the Top 10 countries for flaring in 2017 were Algeria, Nigeria, Venezuela, Libya, Angola and Mexico.
The data was released earlier this week by the Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership, a World Bank-managed organization of governments, oil companies and international institutions working to reduce gas flaring.
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and GGFR have developed flaring estimates in cooperation with the University of Colorado, based on observations from advanced sensors in a satellite launched in 2012.
Gas flaring causes more than 350 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year with serious harmful health impacts. It is also a waste of a valuable resource.
“The latest global flaring data is encouraging, but we will have to wait a few more years to know whether it represents a much-needed turning point,” said Riccardo Puliti, the World Bank’s senior director and head of its Energy & Extractives Global Practice, in a statement.
“Ending routine gas flaring is a key component of our climate change mitigation agenda, and the global flaring reduction initiative we launched just three years ago now has 77 endorsers, covering about 60% of the total gas flared around the world,” he said.
The program has been endorsed by 27 governments, 35 oil companies and 15 development institutions.
The goal is to have zero routine flaring by 2030.
