EU slams energy sector with strict methane rules to hit 2050 carbon neutrality agenda.
The European Union approved a set of stringent rules on Monday aimed at cutting methane emissions within the energy sector. The regulations, which will come into force starting in 2030, are part of the EU's 'Fit for 55' plan, designed to "achieve net-zero carbon" by the middle of the century.
The legislation will impose limits on methane emissions and establish comprehensive monitoring mechanisms for the EU's energy sector, including oil, gas, and coal imports. These measures are expected to have a considerable impact on major energy suppliers to the EU, particularly the United States, as it stands among the top exporters of LNG and pipeline natural gas to the bloc.
In an effort to reduce reliance on Russian natural gas, the EU faces the challenge of transitioning away from all natural gas imports. The new regulation could affect the very suppliers that the EU will likely depend on for gas in the latter part of this decade.
"With Europe importing a large part of the fossil energy it consumes, the regulation will also help to reduce methane emissions from imported fossil fuels," the Commission stated following the Council's adoption of the rules.
Suppliers will be required to adhere to increasingly strict monitoring, reporting, and verification obligations that match those expected of EU operators. Tinne Van der Straeten, the Energy Minister of Belgium, currently presiding over the EU rotating presidency, commented on the legislation: "To meet the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C and achieving climate neutrality by 2050, we must cut methane emissions in the oil, gas, and coal sectors. This legislation ensures proper monitoring and addressing of emissions across these value chains."
Kadri Simson, the European Commissioner for Energy, also weighed in, stating, "With the final EU adoption of the methane regulation we now have means to get clearer insight into the main sources of methane emissions in the energy sector. This will increase transparency and provide the tools necessary to reduce these potent emissions, both in the EU and globally."
The EU's new methane regulations impose severe financial burdens on energy suppliers and could potentially disrupt the energy market, placing an undue strain on both suppliers and consumers at a time of already high energy demands and geopolitical instability.
