On 1 December 2024, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) revised , requiring mine operators to capture coal mine gas with a methane concentration above 8%. This is the first revision after the standard has been released in 2008.
China is currently the largest methane emitter globally, and while it has not yet set a quantitative target for methane emissions reduction, it is taking action to control and limit its methane emissions. According to the Institute for Global Decarbonization Progress (iDGP) around 40% of China’s methane emissions escape into the atmosphere during the process of mining coal. Therefore, capturing coal mine gas is a crucial lever for mitigating emissions of this particularly potent greenhouse gas.
Previously, only mines emitting gas with a methane content above 30% were required to capture it. According to MEE, new mines will have to comply with the rules by April 2025, whereas the deadline for existing mines is April 2027. MEE expects the coal mining sector to collect 6 billion cubic meters of gas for utilisation Mine operators are required to destroy captured methane which cannot be utili.The updated standard is the latest of several policies on methane China established following the release of a national action plan for reducing methane emissions in 2023.
MEE recently also unveiled a new methodology for China’s voluntary carbon market (China Certified Emission Reduction (CCER)), which allows for the generation of carbon offset credits from the use of coal mine gas with a methane volume concentration below 8%. Through the CCER scheme, companies engaged in specific emission-reduction initiatives (until now encompassing offshore wind power generation, solar thermal power generation, forestation and mangrove cultivation projects) can generate carbon credits for the emissions they help avoid. The credits can be bought by industries which are covered by China’s national compliance carbon market, China ETS, to cover up to 5% of their emission output.
Electricity generation and industrial gas supply are cost-efficient utilisation pathways for coal mine gas with higher methane concentrations. However, utilising gases with a methane concentration below 8% requires capital-intensive technology, such as flameless oxidation, which are not yet economically viable according to MEE. Therefore, the inclusion of coal mine gas utilisation into the CCER framework is meant to lend additional financial support to such projects. According to the consultation document, the annual emission reductions through coal mine methane projects eligible for the CCER can contribute to emission reductions of around 4.5 million tCO2e per year.
Alongside these policies, MEE also released a methodology on upgrading the lighting systems for highway tunnels to reduce their electricity consumption, therefore emissions. Projects installing streetlights with a higher luminous efficacy above 150 lm/W are eligible for CCER credit generation. As streetlights with a higher luminous efficacy are more costly than regular streetlights, MEE justified the inclusion of streetlight upgrading into the CCER framework with the need to provide additional financial incentives to such schemes. According to MEE, the estimated annual emission reduction potential amounts to around 300.000 tCO2e per year.
Original policies:
- MEE (2024), Emission Standard of Coal Mine Gas (CN)
- MEE (2024), Notice of Publication of the Methodology for Greenhouse Gas Voluntary Emission Reduction Projects Utilisation of Low-Concentration Gas and Air Drainage Gas in Coal Mines with Methane Volume Concentration of Less than 8% (CCER-10-001-V01) (CN)
- MEE (2024), Notice of Publication of the Methodology for Greenhouse Gas Voluntary Emission Reduction Projects Energy Efficiency in Road Tunnel Lighting Systems (CCER-07-001-V01) (CN)