By: Mirage news

The International Energy Agency (IEA) recently held a regional workshop in Abuja, Nigeria, focused on turning methane reduction commitments into concrete action. Co-hosted with Nigeria's Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the African Energy Commission (AFREC), the event brought together over 100 participants from nine African nations.

This workshop is part of the IEA's Global Methane Engagement Programme, which has now convened over 500 participants from 35 countries through a series of regional meetings. Previous events were held in Baku, focusing on the Caucasus and Central Asia, and in Lima for Latin America and the Caribbean. A future workshop is planned for the Middle East and North Africa region.

A key discussion point was the significant gap between pledges and action. According to the IEA's latest data, while current pledges cover 80% of global oil and gas production, emissions remain high. The agency emphasized that around 70% of energy sector methane emissions could be avoided with existing technology, and a significant share of these measures could pay for themselves within a year by capturing and selling the gas.

To support this effort, the IEA released two new reports. One, produced with UNEP, assesses the progress of over 100 oil and gas companies on their emission reduction pledges. The other highlights the critical role of National Oil Companies (NOCs), finding that their rapid action could deliver an annual methane reduction by 2030 equivalent to the CO2 emissions of the entire global aviation industry.