Nigeria has been listed among nine countries responsible for 83 per cent of global gas flaring in 2025, according to the latest Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report.
The report identified the nine countries driving global flaring as Russia, Iran, Iraq, Venezuela, Mexico, Libya, Algeria, Nigeria, and the United States.
Together, these countries accounted for the vast majority of global gas flaring, while more than 90 other oil-producing nations contributed just 17 percent of total flaring, despite producing 54 per cent of global crude oil output.
For Nigeria, the report showed that gas flaring volumes increased by 8 percent in 2025, in line with an 8 per cent rise in crude oil production during the period.
Despite the increase in absolute volumes, flaring intensity remained largely unchanged, indicating no significant efficiency gains relative to production growth.
The World Bank attributed Nigeria’s persistent flaring challenge to inadequate infrastructure for capturing and transporting associated gas to processing facilities and end-use markets.
It also highlighted aging gas processing infrastructure and frequent system downtime as additional constraints limiting efforts to reduce routine flaring.
While countries such as the United States and Venezuela recorded improvements in flaring intensity, Nigeria, Iraq, and Libya showed little or no change compared to 2024 levels.
The report stressed that sustained reductions in global gas flaring will depend on increased investment in gas gathering, processing, and transportation infrastructure, particularly in high-flaring countries like Nigeria.
It concluded that gas flaring remains heavily concentrated in a small group of oil-producing nations, underscoring persistent inefficiencies in global upstream energy operations.
