The European Union greenhouse gas strategy leaves out methane emissions from gas imports, Reuters reported citing sources familiar with the matter. This is despite pressure from an unlikely alliance of big oil firms, activists, and academics. The EU has already had regulation on methane emissions from gas burned within the member countries. However, it lacks regulations on emissions during the shipping and production of gas imported by the bloc.
The European Commission will propose legislation that requires gas companies to improve monitoring and reporting on their methane emissions. However, the draft methane plan does not set methane standards for imported gas. This means that emissions from imported gas will not show up in European power plants’ tally of greenhouse gases emissions.
Natural gas emits less CO2 when burned compared to coal. However, natural gas production is linked to emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas which is 100 times more potent than CO2 in its first years in the atmosphere. A study found that about 3% of methane leakage from gas pipelines and infrastructure made natural gas no better than coal, in terms of emissions.
