Erfan Afazeli

The global energy transition demands urgent decarbonization of fossil fuel supply chains, particularly in oil-producing nations, where gas flaring and methane leaks remain significant contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This study investigates the integration of blockchain technology into  oil supply chains to enhance transparency, verify emissions reductions, and unlock carbon credit revenue and contributes to supply chain management literature by bridging decarbonization strategies with digital innovation, offering insights for hydrocarbon-dependent economies navigating climate accountability amid geopolitical constraints. Focusing on flare gas recovery (FGR), a high impact decarbonization lever, we propose a framework pairing FGR systems with blockchain-based monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) to address technical and accountability gaps. Key findings reveal that blockchain-enabled MRV systems can mitigate risks of data tampering, streamline verification by international auditors, and improve access to carbon markets. Also, The paper demonstrates that flare gas recovery could significantly mitigate carbon emission while generating revenue via credits and analyzes this concept by economic and technical evaluation of a flare gas recovery system which demonstrates that FGR could reduce emissions by 80% while offsetting 30% of infrastructure costs.  

Co-author/s:

Mohammad Ali Emadi, Secretary General, Iranian Petroleum Institute.

Amin Avazpour, Gas Production Supervisor, Iranian Centeral Oil Fields Company.