Natural gas: Emissions
Burning plus leaks: gas's full climate bill
Burning plus leaks: gas's full climate bill What this tab covers The greenhouse-gas footprint of the commodity at a global level, split by lifecycle phase: extraction (or farming), refining and processing, movement, usage, and recycling or end of life. Intensities are per unit of product; the global total combines intensity with world output. Also covers other environmental impacts and the main levers to cut emissions. Emission intensity 2.55 t CO2e per 1,000 m3 range 2.2-3.2 · cradle-to-grave with 100-year GWP for methane; LNG supply chains sit at the top of the range Global emissions per year 9,500 Mt CO2e per year 2023-2024 · about 7.9 Gt CO2 from gas combustion plus about 1.5 Gt CO2e of methane and operational CO2Per 1,000 m3 of natural gas produced, delivered and burned (cradle-to-grave, global average mix of pipeline and LNG). Intensity: IPCC 2006 Guidelines; IEA Global Methane Tracker 2025 (derived, indicative). Global total: Global Carbon Budget 2024; IEA Global Methane Tracker 2025 (indicative).
Share of footprint by lifecycle phase
Extraction 12% Refining / processing 4% Movement 6% Usage 78%Footprint by lifecycle phase
| Phase | Intensity | Share | Main sources of emissions | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Extraction | about 0.30 t CO2e/1,000 m3 | 12% | methane leaks and venting, fuel for compressors, flaring | Methane intensity ranges from near zero (Norway) to several percent of output in poorly managed fields | IEA Global Methane Tracker 2025 (derived, indicative) |
| Refining / processing | about 0.10 t CO2e/1,000 m3 | 4% | removing CO2 and H2S (often vented), drying and stripping liquids | Fields with high natural CO2 vent large volumes unless captured | IEA 2023 (indicative) |
| Movement | about 0.15 t CO2e/1,000 m3 on average; LNG about 0.3-0.5, long pipelines about 0.1 | 6% | liquefaction uses roughly a tenth of feed gas; LNG shipping; pipeline compressors | Imported LNG from the US to Asia has a much higher chain footprint than local gas | this tile's lessons (liquefaction share); IGU (indicative) |
| Usage | about 2.0 t CO2/1,000 m3 (56.1 kg CO2/GJ x 36 GJ) | 78% | combustion in power plants, industry, homes; steam reforming for ammonia releases the same carbon | Gas emits about 40-50% less CO2 per kWh than coal in power plants (indicative) | IPCC 2006 Guidelines default factor |
| Recycling / end of life | not applicable | – | gas is consumed when burned | Leaks from city distribution and end-user appliances add a little methane | this tile's lessons |
Other environmental impacts
Methane is about 80 times stronger than CO2 over 20 years, so leaks above roughly 2-3% of output can erase gas's climate advantage over coal in the near term (IPCC AR6; indicative).
Levers to cut emissions
- Leak detection and repair and replacing high-bleed pneumatic devices; the IEA puts low-cost abatement at about 40% of oil and gas methane (IEA 2025, indicative)
- Electric-drive liquefaction and carbon capture on acid gas, as at Qatar and Gorgon (indicative)
- End routine flaring and venting (World Bank Zero Routine Flaring by 2030)
- Blending of biomethane and, in India, compressed biogas under the SATAT scheme
India
India burned about 70.3 bcm of gas in 2024, about 140 Mt CO2 on combustion (derived: 70.3 bcm x 2.0 t CO2/1,000 m3). About half was imported LNG, whose liquefaction and shipping emissions fall in Qatar, the US and Australia (Energy Institute 2025).
Emission figures are indicative global averages from the life-cycle studies named; actual footprints vary widely by site, energy mix and method.