EMBER Climate Criticizes Large Methane Gas Emissions from Coal Mines in Indonesia

ASIATODAY.ID, JAKARTA – Global energy think tank EMBER Climate criticizes methane gas emissions from coal mines in Indonesia which are estimated to be eight times greater than official estimates.

According to EMBER Climate, these different estimates risk threatening the commitment to reduce global methane emissions by 30% by 2030, where Indonesia is one of the countries that has signed the global methane agreement.

“Using old estimation methods risks masking the true magnitude of the coal mine methane gas problem in Indonesia. “Indonesia’s credibility in the international arena will be questioned,” said Senior Indonesian Climate and Energy Analyst, EMBER Climate, Dody Setiawan, as quoted in a press release, Wednesday, March 13 2024.

The EMBER Climate report shows that estimates of surface mine methane gas will increase up to four times if we use improved emission factors, namely multiplier values, to more accurately estimate methane gas emissions per ton of coal production according to the recommendations of The Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Apart from that, the latest Indonesian climate report also does not take into account emissions from various underground mining activities carried out by 15 coal companies.

With the rate of increase in open-pit coal mine methane gas emissions reaching 12% per year since 2000, additional emissions from underground mines will increase the total emissions.

“The first step that must be taken is to acknowledge the existence of this problem and update the method for estimating Indonesian coal mine methane gas in the upcoming biannual transparency report (BTR) to the UNFCCC,” said Dody.

For example, the underground coal mining project by Qinfa will add about 332 kilotons of methane (ktCH4) into the atmosphere. If combined with the official figure reported in 2019 (128 ktCH4), total methane emissions would increase threefold.

When converted into carbon dioxide equivalents, combined methane gas emissions from open-pit and underground coal mines will exceed all forest and land fire emissions in Indonesia during 2022.

Therefore, Indonesia has the opportunity to improve the management of coal mine methane gas emissions according to the Global Methane Pledge framework. By addressing the problem of inappropriate reporting, Indonesia can better understand the challenges it faces regarding methane gas emissions.

This will enable Indonesia to implement effective mitigation efforts, improve mine worker safety, and support project developers.

“To achieve the goals of the Global Methane Pledge, Indonesia needs to plan emissions monitoring efforts, and improve the accessibility of mining and methane data,” said Global Coal Mine Tracker Project Manager, Global Energy Monitor (GEM) Dorothy Mei. (ATN)

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