The methane emissions released into the Earth's atmosphere every year remain "at very high levels". This is according to the latest edition of the Global Methane Tracker, the annual report published by the International Energy Agency (IEA), which confirms a trend already highlighted in previous years.

124 million tonnes of methane released into the atmosphere from the fossil fuel sector

This is particularly bad news for global warming, as methane has a "climate-altering potential" far more intense than carbon dioxide. While the latter is the most prevalent greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, methane has a warming effect dozens of times greater than CO2. On the other hand, it persists for a shorter time: a few decades, compared to the several centuries that carbon dioxide remains in the atmosphere. In other words, the cost of methane emissions is paid more immediately — and this is precisely why this source has the potential to derail the commitments made by the international community to limit the rise in average global temperature.

International Energy Agency @IEA

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Methane emissions from the energy sector remained near record highs in 2025.

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Specifically, the report indicates that record production from the fossil fuel sector — coal, oil and gas — in 2025 was responsible for 35 per cent of anthropogenic methane emissions, amounting to 124 million tonnes. This figure represents an increase on the previous year, when it reached 121 million, despite pledges made by numerous governments, starting with the pact approved at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021, which has so far been largely disregarded.

The IEA: "There is no sign of a decline in methane"

The IEA itself notes in the document that "there is no sign that global energy-related methane emissions are declining". The oil sector bears the greatest share of responsibility, with 45 million tonnes, followed by coal (43 million) and gas (36 million). In the first case, methane is released primarily through leaks in infrastructure during degassing operations (the removal of gases dissolved in liquids) and through so-called flaring (the on-site combustion of excess gas extracted alongside oil, producing the characteristic flames visible atop platform towers).

The agency itself suggests that recovering at least these fugitive emissions would be one way to limit the damage: according to its calculations, around 30 per cent could be avoided relatively easily. And all of this "at zero cost", the report stresses, since the gas would be recovered and the expenses incurred in doing so could be offset by selling the raw material on the market. This evidently means, however, that the gas sold will sooner or later be burned by someone, contributing elsewhere to fuelling the climate crisis once again.

The agricultural sector responsible for the majority of emissions

It should be noted that other sectors also make a significant contribution to total emissions, starting with agriculture (and in particular livestock farming), which accounts for around 60 per cent. Overall, total emissions last year amounted to approximately 580 million tonnes. A figure technically incompatible with the goal of limiting the rise in average global temperature to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century, relative to pre-industrial levels — or at least of not straying too far from that threshold.