Norway to provide NOK 10 million for reduction of methane emissions

Methane is a more potent greenhouse gas than CO₂, and many experts therefore see a reduction in methane emissions as the quickest way to limit global warming in the short term. The Global Flaring and Methane Reduction Partnership multi-donor trust fund was launched last year at COP28. The objective is to bring an end to routine flaring and reduce methane emissions in the oil and gas sector by 2030.

‘The latest report from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change sends a very clear message: global emissions are continuing to rise. We need more effective climate actions, and we need them now. Public funding to support the efforts of developing countries is important, but is not enough on its own. That is why I am very pleased that private companies are providing so much of the financing for this fund,’ said Minister of Foreign Affairs Espen Barth Eide.       

The fund is administered by the World Bank and is an innovative mechanism for securing private sector financing. The Norwegian company Equinor and the other energy companies are each giving USD 25 million, roughly NOK 277 million per company, to the fund. Norway also provides resources and expertise through other channels to enable countries to reduce their emissions. For example, Norway will support Nigeria’s efforts to reduce methane emissions and flaring under the Energy for Development programme.

‘Norway is at the forefront of efforts to minimise methane emissions in both the petroleum and waste management sectors, and we have knowledge and experience that can benefit other countries. We have an important role to play in ensuring that companies have the know-how and expertise they need to succeed in reducing methane emissions and flaring,’ Mr Eide said.

Norway remains committed to doubling its climate finance between 2020 and 2026, as pledged at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021. Funding from private sources is essential to meet the need for global climate finance. Norway is also helping to mobilise private capital through Norfund and Norway’s Climate Investment Fund.

‘Mobilising funding from the private sector is crucial if we are to succeed in limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5˚C. The Paris Agreement highlights the importance of climate finance and support for developing countries in enabling those countries to develop sustainable, low-emission economies,’ said Minister of International Development Anne Beathe Tvinnereim.

Norway also plays an active role in the Global Methane Pledge and the Climate and Clean Air Coalition.