WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th November, 2020) The United States' statements blaming Russian energy suppliers of poor environmental standards are yet another attempt to gain competitive advantage in the hydrocarbon market, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said on Wednesday.
Antonov's comments come in response to the statement made by US Assistant Secretary for Energy Resources Francis Fannon who cited the Carbon Disclosure Project saying Gazprom ranks as one of the worst performers regarding the environment.
"Attempts to accuse our energy suppliers of weak environmental standards in comparison with the American ones do not hold water," Antonov said. "We see this as another attempt to gain additional competitive advantages in the hydrocarbon market."
Antonov emphasized that Gazprom's activities comply with international standards and the company regularly improves its technologies. He explained that methane emissions along the entire production chain in 2019 amounted to 0.02 percent of the volume of recoverable gas during production, 0.29 percent during transportation, and 0.03 percent during underground storage.
"This is in line with the world's best practices for stopping methane leaks," Antonov said. "Gazprom is doing this work in cooperation with leading global corporations - partners within the framework of the international initiative 'Guidelines for Reducing Methan Emissions in the Natural Gas Supply Chain" launched in November 2017."
Antonov also said the Nord Stream 2 and the Turkish Stream projects are being implemented in strict accordance with the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment.
"Hydrocarbon footprint, i.e. CO2 emissions from the transportation of 'blue fuel' through these pipelines will be more than three times lower compared to the supply of liquefied natural gas from the United States," he said. "This is achieved by using the most modern technologies."
Antonov also said that the use of Russian natural gas, which is an efficient and environmentally friendly fuel, contributes to the achievement of United Nations sustainable development goals and the fulfillment of obligations under the Paris Climate Accord.
Its use contributes to the low-carbon development by economies of countries who are importing Russian raw materials, Antonov added.
