Oil and Gas Industry Faces Setback in Flaring Reduction Efforts

Flaring emissions from global upstream oil and gas production activity increased by 7% from 2022 to 2023, according to latest Rystad Energy research. Upstream activities emit about 1 gigatonne per year of carbon dioxide (CO2) in total, with flaring contributing around 30% of those emissions in 2023 assuming 98% flaring efficiency on average. Flaring reduction is considered a low-hanging fruit for oil and gas companies trying to reduce their carbon footprint. However, this recent uptick underscores the challenges facing the industry, particularly…