Nigeria has been listed among nine countries responsible for more than 83 per cent of global gas flaring in 2025.
This is according to the latest Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report released by the World Bank’s Global Flaring and Methane Reduction Partnership (GFMR) in collaboration with the Payne Institute at the Colorado School of Mines.
The report identified Nigeria alongside Russia, Iran, Iraq, Venezuela, Mexico, Libya, Algeria and the United States as the countries accounting for the overwhelming majority of global gas flaring last year.
Collectively, the nine nations produced just 46 per cent of the world’s crude oil but were responsible for more than four-fifths of all gas flared globally.
Gas flaring occurs when natural gas produced during crude oil extraction is burned instead of being captured for domestic use, exports or industrial applications.
The practice not only wastes a valuable energy resource but also contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. According to the report, global gas flaring rose for the third consecutive year, increasing from 157 billion cubic metres (bcm) in 2024 to 167 bcm in 2025.
