Report on Global Gas Flaring and its Implications for Sustainable Development Goals

Executive Summary

A July 2025 report from the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Tracker indicates a significant setback for global sustainability efforts. Gas flaring increased for the second consecutive year in 2024, reaching 151 billion cubic meters (bcm), the highest level in nearly two decades. This practice undermines progress on key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related to energy access, climate action, and responsible production.

Impact on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The rise in gas flaring directly contravenes the principles of the SDGs. The primary impacts are detailed below:

• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy: The 151 bcm of gas flared in 2024 represents a significant loss of energy resources, valued at approximately $63 billion. This waste occurs while over a billion people globally lack access to reliable energy, highlighting a critical inefficiency in resource management. The volume of wasted gas is comparable to Africa’s total annual gas consumption.
• SDG 13: Climate Action: The practice released an estimated 389 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent into the atmosphere. This includes 46 million tonnes of unburnt methane, a greenhouse gas significantly more potent than carbon dioxide. These emissions directly impede efforts to manage global emissions and combat climate change.
• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production: Analysis reveals a profound inefficiency in global oil production. The top nine flaring nations are responsible for 75% of all gas flaring while contributing less than 50% of global oil production. Furthermore, the flaring intensity—the volume of gas flared per barrel of oil—has shown no improvement over the past 15 years, indicating a persistent pattern of unsustainable production.

Key Findings from the 2025 Global Gas Flaring Tracker

1. Global gas flaring volume reached 151 billion cubic meters in 2024, an increase of 3 bcm from the previous year.
2. The economic loss from this wasted resource is estimated at $63 billion.
3. Total emissions from flaring amounted to 389 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent.
4. A small number of countries (the top nine) account for the majority (75%) of flaring activities.

Strategic Interventions and Progress

Despite the overall negative trend, targeted initiatives demonstrate a viable path toward reducing flaring and aligning with SDG targets.

The Zero Routine Flaring by 2030 (ZRF) Initiative

Countries that have committed to the ZRF initiative show markedly better performance in curbing flaring. Key performance metrics include:

• ZRF Signatories: Achieved an average 12% reduction in flaring intensity since 2012.
• Non-Signatories: Witnessed a 25% increase in flaring intensity over the same period.

The Global Flaring and Methane Reduction (GFMR) Partnership

The World Bank’s GFMR Partnership is actively working to accelerate progress by supporting projects that turn wasted gas into a resource for sustainable development. The partnership’s activities include:

1. Providing catalytic grants and technical assistance.
2. Advising on policy and regulatory reform.
3. Offering capacity building and institutional strengthening.

A notable example is a GFMR-supported project in Uzbekistan, where an $11 million investment is projected to cut methane emissions by up to 100,000 tonnes annually by addressing leaks in the gas transportation network.

Conclusion and Recommendations

The continued practice of gas flaring represents a major obstacle to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The solutions and policy frameworks to address this issue exist. It is imperative that governments and oil and gas operators prioritize flaring reduction. By implementing effective policies and investing in proven solutions, the gas currently being wasted can be repurposed as a catalyst for economic development, improved energy access (SDG 7), and decisive climate action (SDG 13).

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
• SDG 13: Climate Action
• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy

  • Target 7.1: By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services. The article directly connects the waste from gas flaring to energy poverty, stating, “When more than a billion people still don’t have access to reliable energy… it’s very frustrating to see this natural resource wasted.” This implies that capturing the flared gas could improve energy access.
  • Target 7.a: By 2030, enhance international cooperation to facilitate access to clean energy research and technology. The article highlights the role of the World Bank’s Global Flaring and Methane Reduction (GFMR) Partnership in providing “technical assistance, policy and regulatory reform advisory services” to reduce flaring, which is a form of international cooperation to manage energy resources more cleanly and efficiently.

• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

  • Target 8.4: Improve progressively, through 2030, global resource efficiency in consumption and production and endeavour to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation. The article discusses the economic loss from flaring, noting it “wasted about $63 billion in lost energy.” The call to “turn this wasted gas into an engine for economic development” directly supports decoupling growth from the environmental damage and inefficiency of flaring.

• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

  • Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources. Gas flaring is presented as a prime example of inefficient resource use. The article laments seeing “this natural resource wasted” and notes that flaring intensity “has remained stubbornly high for the last 15 years,” indicating a persistent failure in achieving efficient use of natural gas associated with oil production.

• SDG 13: Climate Action

  • Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning. The article emphasizes that flaring is setting back “efforts to manage emissions.” The “Zero Routine Flaring by 2030 (ZRF) initiative” is a clear example of a policy and strategy aimed at mitigating climate change, and the article notes that countries committed to it have “performed significantly better” in reducing flaring.

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

  • Target 17.16: Enhance the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships. The article is centered around the work of the World Bank’s “Global Flaring and Methane Reduction (GFMR) Partnership,” which is described as a “multi-donor trust fund supported by governments, companies, and multilateral organizations.”
  • Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships. The ZRF initiative, which involves governments and companies, and the collaboration between GFMR and the Payne Institute at the Colorado School of Mines for satellite data analysis are perfect examples of the public-private and academic partnerships promoted by this target.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• Indicators for SDG 7, 12, and 13

  • Volume of gas flared: The article states flaring reached “151 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2024.” This is a direct measure of wasted natural resources and a source of emissions.
  • Flaring intensity: The report measures “the amount of gas flared per barrel of oil produced.” This indicator tracks the efficiency of oil production operations.
  • Greenhouse gas emissions: The article quantifies emissions as “389 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent,” including “46 million of that from unburnt methane.” This directly measures the climate impact.
  • Reduction in flaring intensity: The article provides a metric for progress, noting that ZRF countries achieved an “average 12% reduction in flaring intensity” since 2012, while non-endorsers saw a “25% increase.”

• Indicators for SDG 8

  • Monetary value of wasted resources: The article estimates the economic loss at “about $63 billion in lost energy,” which serves as an indicator of resource inefficiency and lost economic opportunity.

• Indicators for SDG 17

  • Number and effectiveness of partnerships: The article implicitly measures the success of the ZRF partnership by comparing the performance of countries that have endorsed the initiative against those that have not. The existence and activities of the GFMR partnership itself is an indicator of ongoing multi-stakeholder collaboration.

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: worldbank.org