Mitigating emissions from ventilation air methane (VAM) in the EU
Methane mitigation from coal mine ventilation shafts is Europe’s most under-leveraged climate opportunity. VAM technology has been commercially proven since 2004, with active projects on three continents. Yet across the European Union, deployment remains virtually absent. This webinar brought together officials and project advisors from the European Commission, technology providers and on-the-ground analysts to ask: why not the EU, and what will it take to change that?
The climate imperative
Kaj Embren (Methane Brief) opened by framing methane as the fastest lever for near-term warming, noting that while the technology is proven globally, it remains absent in the EU. Sabina Assan (Ember) provided the data: coal is the EU’s largest energy-sector methane source, with VAM from just 11 Polish coal mines constituting the single largest point-source of emissions in the bloc. Dr. Lena Höglund-Isaksson (IIASA) shared findings from the 2025 Global Methane Pledge follow-up report, stressing that the world is not on track to meet the 30% reduction target by 2030 and VAM oxidation alone accounts for 10% of total global mitigation potential across all sectors.
Obstacles to European deployment
Guy Drouin (Biothermica) drew on his expertise building US projects to argue that the EU lacks a viable economic framework, specifically, carbon market recognition for VAM as a tradable offset.
Dinko Raychev (European Commission DG Energy) highlights that the new EU Methane Regulation provides the necessary “sticks and carrots”, pointing to Article 22’s declining venting thresholds (5 tonnes of methane per kilotonne of coal mined (t/kt) in 2027; 3t/kt in 2031) and Article 22.4’s allowance for member-state incentives.
Zuzanna Charlowska (Instrat) highlighted the reality in Poland, where 100% of VAM emitted was released to the atmosphere in 2024. Major barriers to change highlighted were dramatically low environmental fees of €0.10 per tonne of methane emitted and a coal mining sector relying on €2 billion in annual state aid, noting that current methodologies might even allow major producers to meet 2027 limits in the EU methane regulation without making actual cuts.
