About the Initiative

Recognizing the important role of methane in global warming and its potential use as a clean energy source, 14 countries came together in 2004 to launch the Methane to Markets Partnership. On 1 October 2010, thirty-seven governments and the European Commission—plus the Asian Development Bank and Inter-American Development Bank—launched the Global Methane Initiative (GMI) to urge stronger international action to fight climate change while developing clean energy and stronger economies.

GMI builds on the existing structure and success of the Methane to Markets Partnership to reduce emissions of methane, while enhancing and expanding these efforts and encouraging new resource commitments from country partners. By engaging partner governments and private sector entities, the Initiative brings together the technical and market expertise, financing, and technology necessary for methane capture and use project development around the world. Together, the Initiative is accelerating deployment of methane emission-reducing technologies and practices, stimulating economic growth and energy security in Member Countries, improving local environmental quality, and leading the fight against global warming. Since the 2004 launch, the number of Members has more than doubled.

Purpose

GMI is an international public-private initiative that advances cost effective, near-term methane recovery and use as a clean energy source in four sectors: agriculture, coal mines, landfills, and oil and gas systems. These projects reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the near term and provide a number of important environmental and economic co-benefits such as:

  • Stimulating local economic growth
  • Creating new sources of affordable alternative energy
  • Improving local air and water quality, with associated public health benefits
  • Increasing industrial worker safety

The Initiative reduces the informational, institutional, and other market barriers to project development through the development of tools & resources, training and capacity building, technology demonstration, and direct project support. Special emphasis is given to bringing together all of the actors necessary for project development, including governments, financial institutions, project developers, technology providers and others. More detailed information about the Initiative can be found in the Initiative Fact Sheet (PDF, 2 pp, 186 KB) and Initiative Frequently Asked Questions.

Structure and Organization

Select a box in the graphic below for specific member lists.


GMI is organized with the aim of providing support to project development with active engagement from the private sector. The Terms of Reference explains the organizational framework of the Initiative, which consists of a Steering Committee, four technical subcommittees, the Project Network and the Administrative Support Group (ASG).

  • The Steering Committee guides the work of the Initiative and is supported by the ASG. It governs the Initiative's framework, policies and procedures. Member Countries may appoint up to two representatives to the Steering Committee. All Members are considered Steering Committee "observers" from the time they join the Initiative. Twelve months after joining (and any time thereafter), Members may request to become a Steering Committee member via a letter to the ASG that outlines their engagement (PDF, 1 pp., 16 KB) in the Initiative to-date.
  • The technical subcommittees are organized according to sources of methane emissions. Members appoint technical experts from either the government or the private sector to the technical subcommittees. Contact information for Subcommittee representatives is available here (agriculture, underground coal mines, landfills and oil and gas systems). Each subcommittee has developed a sector-specific Action Plan that identifies the needs, opportunities and priorities for project development globally as well as key barriers and strategies to overcome them. The Subcommittees are now focusing their efforts on developing country-specific plans in each sector to provide more detailed information to assist project development in each respective Member Country. The technical subcommittees also facilitate investment and financing opportunities and other cooperative activities and projects that advance the recovery of methane and its use as an energy source.
  • The Project Network consists of organizations from industry, the research community, financial institutions, state and local governments and other expert stakeholders with an interest in developing and supporting methane capture and use projects in Member Countries. Project Network members share their technical expertise, experience, and financial resources and are encouraged to attend subcommittee meetings and participate in developing sector-specific Action Plans. They also participate in specific activities such as capacity building, technology transfer and outreach. By participating in the Project Network, these organizations are identifying potential project opportunities, making connections, staying informed and gaining recognition for their achievements. The Project Network membership has increased nearly ten-fold over the past five years.
  • The Administrative Support Group (ASG) currently hosted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, serves as the secretariat for the Initiative by providing administrative and logistical support and also serves as an information clearinghouse.

Benefits

As a result of its efforts, the Initiative expects to achieve significant economic, environmental, and energy benefits. When GMI was launched in 2004 as Methane to Markets, it was estimated that within 10 years, the Initiative had the potential to deliver estimated annual reductions in methane emissions of more than 180 MMTCO2E, or the equivalent of:

  • More than 760 billion cubic feet of natural gas.
  • CO2 emissions from nearly 420 million barrels of oil consumed.
  • Annual emissions from 76 500-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plants.

If achieved, these reductions could lead to stabilized or even declining levels of global atmospheric concentrations of methane. More information about the benefits associated with methane emission reductions can be found in the About Methane section of this website or in the Methane Analysis Fact Sheet (PDF, 4 pp, 882 KB).

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