The International Gas Union (IGU) has joined calls for the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol to recognise market instruments for renewable gaseous fuels, backing an open letter aimed at clarifying their role in corporate emissions accounting. Natural Gas World reported that the industry organisation had co-signed the letter as it seeks recognition for green gases in global decarbonisation efforts.
The initiative, titled “Let Green Gas Count”, argues that the Protocol needs to accommodate robust market instruments to support the deployment of lower-carbon gas solutions. According to the report, guidance that had helped provide investment certainty in the renewable gas market has been withdrawn. The letter seeks greater clarity over how these instruments can be used as production of fuels such as hydrogen and renewable natural gas increases.
A central request is for a market-based approach to renewable gases within Scope 1 emissions inventories, covering their use both as fuel and as feedstock. The proposal allows for that approach to sit within a dual-reporting structure incorporating both location-based and market-based accounting. It therefore seeks recognition of market instruments alongside, rather than solely through, a location-based approach.
The letter also asks for an interim statement in the first half of 2025 confirming that robust market instruments will be recognised in greenhouse gas inventories. Such a statement is intended to give stakeholders greater confidence while final standards are being developed, Natural Gas World reported. The request concerns interim recognition as well as the eventual accounting framework.
Explaining the IGU’s support, its director for strategy and advocacy, Mark McCrory, said the gas industry was developing lower-carbon technologies, including renewable gaseous fuels, through innovation and collaboration. He argued that appropriate investment signals were essential to deploying those technologies at scale. In the IGU’s view, full recognition of established tools such as renewable gas certificates would clarify the position for investors and help companies and industrial users pursue decarbonisation.