PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The federal government has opened grant applications for research into reducing methane emissions in the resources sector.
Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Madeleine King says the Resources Methane Abatement Fund will provide around A$8.5-million in grants to universities and research institutions to develop projects that will cut methane emissions from Australia’s coal and gas industries.
“The Australian government is committed to lowering emissions and playing a lead role in helping the world to decarbonise and fight climate change,” King says.
“Fugitive emissions from coal and gas projects are responsible for around 29% of Australia’s methane emissions. The government is determined to lower emissions from the resources sector, and we will work with industry to decarbonise and curb fugitive methane emissions.”
King says once commercially viable, methane abatement technology will help Australia reach net zero by 2050.
She says the grants programme also supports Australia’s commitments under the Global Methane Pledge and government reforms to the Safeguard Mechanism.
Australia this week signed the joint statement on Accelerating Methane Mitigation from the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Value Chain, joining the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the European Union.
The countries will collaborate on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, particularly methane, across LNG imports and exports, with the aim of reducing global anthropogenic methane emissions by at least 30% by 2030 from 2020 levels.
The signees also expressed their strong support for accelerated methane reduction in the LNG value chain by both public and private stakeholders and resolved to advance further methane reduction associated with the LNG value chain.