International shipping coalition launches beyond methane pledge

Backed by seven key civil society organizations, the Say No to LNG global shipping campaign launched the ‘Beyond Methane Pledge’, an ambitious initiative seeking to halt the expansion of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and other methane-based fuels, and phase-out their use in all sectors – globally.

The pledge calls upon key industry leaders, including ship owners, cargo owners, ports, cities, policymakers, energy producers, suppliers/utilities, transporters, and financial institutions, to take decisive action by committing to a sustainable energy future free from the dangers of methane.

LNG, and other methane-based fuels such as bio-methane and e-methane, are primarily composed of methane — an extremely powerful greenhouse gas with 80 times more global warming potential than carbon dioxide in the short-term. Methane leaks throughout supply chains and poses significant risks to the climate, environment, and public health.

If global methane emissions are reduced by 45%, we could prevent 260,000 premature deaths, 775,000 asthma-related hospital visits, 73 billion hours of lost labor from extreme heat, and 25 million tonnes of crop losses every year.

LNG is also a poor investment: LNG infrastructure will become costly stranded assets for taxpayers and investors. Every dollar to LNG locks us into a fossil fuel future and takes away investments that lower the cost of true zero-emission fuels.

“LNG is not a bridge fuel; it’s a bridge to climate disaster. The Beyond Methane Pledge is a powerful tool for collective action. Commitments around the world to reject LNG in favour of zero-emission solutions that justly address climate, pollution, and biodiversity threats will help us reach the future we need.” – Curtis Martin, Canada Shipping Campaigner, Say No to LNG Campaign

Industry Leaders: Sign the Pledge and Take Action Now

The Beyond Methane Pledge calls on signatories to demonstrate their commitment to a sustainable future by taking immediate and concrete steps:

Halt Expansion: Stop any plans or activities that would expand the use of LNG and other methane-based fuels, immediately and no later than 2025. This includes halting the construction of new infrastructure, and ceasing additional financial investments in projects.

Phase Out Use: A complete phase-out of LNG and other methane-based fuels by 2030, including direct use as a fuel, and any activities that enable use by others (such as financing, bunkering, and transporting).

Promote Transparency: Use language that accurately reflects the climate impact of methane and the full lifecycle emissions of LNG and other methane-based fuels. This includes acknowledging the 20-year global warming potential of methane, which is over 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide, and the well-to-wake detrimental social, health, environmental, and climate impacts of LNG and methane throughout their lifecycle.

Signatories of this pledge will safeguard investments against stranded LNG assets, ensure regulatory compliance, strengthen accountability and transparency, and position themselves as climate leaders in this rapidly-evolving maritime sector.

The Pledge also encourages supporters to become pledge champions, calling for immediate action on methane emissions and halting investments in the LNG supply chain, including marine fuels and shipping.

Hear from our initial champions:

“Halting the use of LNG and the fracking that extracts it is a critical step towards a cleaner, healthier future for our planet and communities. Stand.earth is proud to endorse this ambitious initiative and we call on other organizations to join us in demanding a swift transition away from LNG.”

-Anna Barford, Canada Shipping Campaigner, Stand.earth

“Beyond safeguarding our environment and communities most vulnerable to the effects of the climate crisis, saying no to LNG also makes economic sense: channeling investment towards unsustainable LNG projects risks sinking billions in finances in stranded assets that could otherwise have funded solutions aligned with global climate targets.”

-Isabela Keuschnigg, Legal Officer at Opportunity Green 

“As shipping in the Arctic switches away from heavy fuels responsible for high emissions of black carbon pollution, and moves to cleaner polar fuels, LNG should be dismissed as a potential alternative. Far from kickstarting the decarbonisation of Arctic shipping, replacing one short-lived climate pollutant such black carbon with another – methane will merely prolong the Arctic climate crisis. The shipping industry must look elsewhere for energy sources, including wind power, that do not rely on the burning of fossil fuels.”

– Dr Sian Prior, Lead Advisor to the Clean Arctic Alliance

“The climate crisis is accelerating at high speeds. It is absolutely irresponsible within this situation to accept a technology that releases high amounts of the short-term climate killer methane. LNG does not contribute to shipping decarbonization but puts it at risk. Therefore, it is of highest importance to direct today’s investments to real zero-emission technologies.”

-Sönke Diesener, Senior Transport Policy Officer, NABU

Ships built today will last for decades. Switching from oil to gas now will simply lock the shipping industry into a future of fossil fuels. Luckily there are truly green solutions available. Ships can become more efficient by using wind power technology, while e-fuels made from green hydrogen would allow giant cargo ships to cross the oceans without damaging the planet. It is not a lack of technology but a lack of will. Thanks to economies of scale, it costs major shipping companies like Maersk and MSC just peanuts to switch to green technologies. It’s time we stopped letting them off the hook.

-Constance Dijkstra, IMO Policy Manager, Transport & Environment

To achieve crucial climate targets, we need to focus on investing resources in true zero-emission shipping solutions. Given their long life, immediate investments in vessels and supportive infrastructure can limit future choices, so we must get them right. To put shipping on a pathway to zero emissions by 2050 we need political interventions like the Methane pledge, not only to better regulate methane but also to improve the economic viability of near-zero and zero-GHG fuels and technologies.

-Delaine McCullough, President, Clean Shipping Coalition

LNG poses a grave threat to our climate, environment, and communities. As a potent greenhouse gas, it significantly contributes to global warming and has no place in a sustainable future. When comparing the global warming impact of LNG methane emissions with CO2 emissions from shipping, there is no life-cycle benefit in using LNG for any marine engine technology, and any further investment in LNG would only lead to stranded assets as the industry moves on to zero-emission fuels.

-Mandeera Wijetunga, Climate Campaigner, Ports, Pacific Environment

Together, we are building a powerful coalition to end the use of LNG and drive the transition to a commercially viable zero-emissions shipping value chain.

Tags: International Shipping Coalition, LNG, Say No To LNG