Woodside has become the first Australian company to pledge to strive for near zero methane emissions by 2030 as environmental pressure grows.
Woodside has pledged to strive for near-zero methane emissions by 2030, becoming the first Australian company to sign on to the global initiative. The commitment, which saw the oil and gas company sign on to the international movement led by fossil fuel industry figures, comes as Woodside comes under increasing environmental pressure to accelerate its ambition for reducing emissions.
“Signing this initiative is an example of our commitment to meeting our own emissions reduction targets and to encouraging our entire industry to join this effort,” Woodside chief executive Meg O’Neill saidOil and Gas Climate Initiative executive chairman Bjørn Otto Sverdrup praised Woodside’s pledge. “We hope other producers, from Australasia and beyond, will join Woodside in recognising that eliminating methane emissions from the oil and gas industry represents one of the best short-term ways to address climate change,” Mr Sverdrup said.Roughly 2 per cent of its greenhouse gas emissions come from methane, while carbon dioxide accounts for 90 per cent. Woodside said its methane emissions were less than 0.1 per cent, already below the target set by the initiative. The commitment to the initiative is part of Woodside’s pledge to reduce its emissions. Woodside has vowed to reduce its Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 15 per cent by 2025 and 30 per cent by 2030. It said it would reach net zero emissions by 2050 and would spend $5 billion on clean energy projects,its outlay on expanding production of traditional fossil fuelsWoodside late last year gave the go-ahead to the $16.4 billion Scarborough project, which is set to be the biggest fossil fuel development in Australia for almost a decade andThe Scarborough project – holding about 11 trillion cubic feet of gas – would lock in another 30 years of LNG exports starting in 2026, when shipments are due to start from the expanded Pluto site near Karratha.Scarborough gas project, which will emit almost 1.4 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases over its lifetime, is the subject of growing opposition, though Woodside has promised to curtail emissions and insists gas is critical for the global energy transition. Environmental advocates insist new fossil fuel projects are incompatible with a commitment to net zero emissions, and have citied the recent federal election as support for stronger climate action. But both the West Australian and federal Labor government remain stedfast in their support for gas, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese this month insisting it was unrealistic to turn off fossil fuel production immediately.
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