Methane Abatement Opportunities in the Oil & Gas Extraction Sector

Cutting methane emissions in Canada’s oil and gas extraction sector can be a relatively fast solution to reducing an important portion of Canada’s overall GHG emissions. Based on new research by our team, we now know what it would cost to seize this opportunity.

A new report developed by Dunsky for our client Environmental Defense Fund finds that Canada’s upstream oil and gas sector can eliminate 75% of its methane emissions at an average cost of about $11 per tonne.

The graph below shows that the most cost-effective abatement opportunities are found at gas production sites (blue) and that addressing these leaks will help get the sector most of the way to meeting the federal government’s 75% methane emissions reduction target. Specific measures in oil production such as leak detection or equipment electrification (orange) can further support the achievement of these targets.

To learn more about methane emissions in Canada, as well as our methodology in developing this report, read the article on the Environmental Defense Fund website.