World Bank plans to end gas flaring by 2030

THE World Bank has unveiled plans to set a global standard to stop gas flaring, in an attempt to end the pollution and waste of resources that it creates.

Nigeria is one of the top gas flaring countries in the world, throwing up about 22.3 billion standard cubic feet (scf) of gas in a month.

Current data from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) showed that the country lost about $1billion as oil companies operating in the country flared a big chunk of the gas produced from January to September 2014.
According to data from the NNPC, about 296 billion standard cubic feet of natural gas was flared in the nine-month period.

The World Bank said in a statement at the weekend that the “Zero Routine Flaring by 2030” initiative is expected to brings together governments, oil companies, and development institutions who recognize the flaring situation described above is unsustainable from a resource management and environmental perspective, and who agree to cooperate to eliminate routine flaring no later than 2030.

The initiative, according to the bank, pertains to routine flaring and not to flaring for safety reasons or non-routine flaring, which nevertheless should be minimized.

It stated that governments that endorse the initiative will provide a legal, regulatory, investment, and operating environment that is conducive to upstream investments and to the development of viable markets for utilization of the gas and the infrastructure necessary to deliver the gas to these markets.

“This will provide companies the confidence and incentive as a basis for investing in flare elimination solutions. Governments will require, and stipulate in their new prospect offers, that field development plans for new oil fields incorporate sustainable utilization or conservation of the field’s associated gas without routine flaring. Furthermore, governments will make every effort to ensure that routine flaring at existing oil fields ends as soon as possible, and no later than 2030.

“Oil companies that endorse the Initiative will develop new oil fields they operate according to plans that incorporate sustainable utilization or conservation of the field’s associated gas without routine flaring. Oil companies with routine flaring at existing oil fields they operate will seek to implement economically viable solutions to eliminate this legacy flaring as soon as possible, and no later than 2030”, it added.

The World Bank disclosed that development institutions that endorse the Initiative will facilitate cooperation and implementation, and consider the use of financial instruments and other measures, particularly in their client countries.

It added that governments and oil companies that endorse the Initiative will publicly report their flaring and progress towards the Initiative on an annual basis.

It said that the parties that endorse the Initiative acknowledge that its success requires all involved – governments and oil companies, with the support of development institutions – to fully cooperate and take the action described herein to eliminate routine flaring no later than 2030.