This investigation was prepared by Hanène Zbiss and supported by the Journalismfund Europe
Just a few meters from an olive grove and not far from the road linking Mahrez to Sfax (270 km from the Tunisian capital), a chimney flares gas. The scene is all too familiar to local residents, who no longer pay attention to the flames rising from the chimney at the Hannibal natural gas refinery in Sfax, now operated by the British company Shell after its 2015 acquisition of British Gas, the refinery’s previous owner.
According to data obtained by the “Burning Skies” project, the station connected to the Miskar oil field burned 0.009 billion cubic meters of gas between 2012 and 2022, resulting in the emission of approximately 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
These harmful gases are inhaled by residents of a small neighborhood called Sidi Bou Akkazine, located about 3 kilometers from the station. In this area, they cultivate olives and also grow peppers in greenhouses.
In 2012, the Tunisian Court of Auditors reported that the amount of gas lost in production fields due to flaring reached 11% of Tunisia’s total gas production in 2010 (equivalent to 2.7 million tons), “which could harm the environment and result in the waste of a portion of the national gas resources.”
In response to the report, the Ministry of Industry, Energy, and Mines stated that “since 2005, oil companies with production concessions have been informed of the need to find technical solutions to gradually reduce gas flaring until it is completely eliminated.”
However, in practice, many oil companies in Tunisia continue to flare gas, taking advantage of the lack of national legislation prohibiting this practice. This results in the release of greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming and causing environmental problems.
This investigation is part of a series of investigative reports within the cross-border “Burning Skies” project on gas flaring, led by the European Investigative Collaborations (EIC), in cooperation with the Environmental Investigative Forum (EIF) and several media platforms, including Daraj.
The project examines gas flaring emissions in 18 countries in Africa and the Middle East. The team has combined gas flaring emission data from Skytruth with maps of oil and gas concessions and permits to calculate annual flaring emissions for various sites—including oil fields, gas fields, refineries, and liquefied natural gas plants—in several countries, including Tunisia, for the period from 2012 to 2022.
According to the project data, Tunisia’s gas flaring rate in 2022 was 0.3 billion cubic meters, resulting in the release of approximately 816,000 tons of carbon dioxide. Although this rate has decreased compared to 2012, when it was 0.8 billion cubic meters, it does not mean that Tunisia can relax its efforts. Studies conducted worldwide have shown that flaring can harm both public health and the environment, so Tunisia must intensify its efforts to curtail and eventually stop these practices.
Colorless, Odorless Gases with Significant Harmful Effects
On the nearly deserted roads in the summer heat of the Sidi Bou Akkazine neighborhood, located between Mahrez and Sfax, we encountered a farmer and asked him if the gas from the station was causing him breathing problems or negatively affecting his crops. He replied, “The station has been here for years, and I have not noticed any harm.” The same response came from a young man in his twenties from the neighborhood who was passing by the pepper greenhouses.
These negative responses are not surprising, as burning gas, while often colorless and odorless, contains numerous harmful substances, including carbon dioxide. This does not negate the potential long-term damage it can inflict on agriculture and human health. Ghazi Ben Jemaa, an expert in the hydrocarbons sector, emphasizes this by stating, “Even if the quantities disposed of through flaring are small, the potential for long-term environmental and health damage remains.”
For his part, Zied Mallouli, a civil activist and founder of the “Sayeb Trottoir” campaign aimed at preserving the beauty and cleanliness of the city of Sfax, believes that “most residents living near oil fields or gas stations do not pay attention to the gases they emit and the potential damage they may cause. Even if they were aware of the harmful effects, they would likely not acknowledge them because many work in these fields or have relatives employed there and do not want to lose their jobs.”
Flaring is the process of burning gas associated with crude oil production in oil fields and gas stations, either to dispose of it or for safety purposes. The release of gas into the atmosphere through flaring and venting is an industrial practice that dates back 160 years. Gas flaring emits pollutants such as carbon dioxide, methane, and black carbon, contributing to climate change and adversely affecting the environment.
Global estimates indicate that every cubic meter of burned gas produces approximately 2.8 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. While it is possible to reuse the gas that is flared to generate energy, particularly electricity, or to re-inject it into the same oil or gas field, oil companies justify their continued flaring by claiming that the reuse process is more expensive than production or the quantities being disposed of through flaring. However, Ghazi Ben Jemaa, an expert in the hydrocarbons sector, argues that “the process of converting gas into electricity is not costly, even if the quantities of gas needing disposal are small, as there are small-scale facilities for this purpose that cost no more than $10,000.”
Estimates from the Global Flaring and Methane Reduction Partnership (GFMR), launched by the World Bank, indicate that global gas flaring increased from 139 billion cubic meters in 2022 to 148 billion cubic meters in 2023. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas with a global warming potential up to 80 times greater than that of carbon dioxide. Activities in the oil and gas sector account for nearly one-fifth of global methane emissions resulting from human activity, with almost half of these emissions occurring in developing countries.
Returning to Shell, we find that the company flared a total of 0.09 billion cubic meters of gas in Tunisia between 2012 and 2022 at its various operating sites, resulting in the emission of 0.23 million tons of carbon dioxide, according to project data. The company is part of the Zero Routine Flaring by 2030 (ZRF) initiative launched by the World Bank in 2015, which commits governments and oil companies to eliminate routine gas flaring by 2030.
It is also worth noting that in the United Kingdom, the law does not prohibit flaring; however, it requires obtaining a prior license from the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA), which is authorized to grant approval for flaring or venting gas from oil or gas processing facilities, as outlined in the Energy Law of 2016. In contrast, in Tunisia, there is no law prohibiting flaring or venting, allowing many oil companies operating in the country to do so freely.
In response to questions from the project team, a Shell representative stated: “Shell no longer operates oil and gas production assets in Tunisia that involve flaring, as it returned the Miskar offshore field license to the Tunisian government in June 2022. Shell still holds a 50% interest in the Hannibal field; however, this operation is not managed by Shell. The operator (APO) provides flaring data to Shell, which is summarized each month in APO’s monthly Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) report. The amount being flared is very low in relation to production.”
European Companies Fail to Uphold Commitments Beyond Their Borders
Shell is not the only company flaring gas in the Sfax region; Sfax is known as Tunisia’s economic capital, characterized by a high population density and housing numerous petroleum facilities.
Located 25 km northwest of the city is the Sidi Ltayem Conventional Oil Field, operated by the Franco-Tunisian Petroleum Company (CFTP). This company was established in 1968 through a partnership between the Tunisian state and the French Petroleum Company (CFP) and was awarded the “Sfax- Kerkennah” exploration license. The work carried out led to the discovery of two fields: “Sidi Ltayem” in 1971, which began production in 1972, and the “Sidi Bahara” field in 1972.
Situated among olive groves, the Sidi Ltayem Conventional Oil Field is approximately 15 kilometers from the village of Bir Mellouli, which has a primary school. As you approach the field, the gas flare is clearly visible. According to the company’s website, the Sidi Ltayem field produced 34,000 cubic meters of oil in 2021. The oil is transported to the port of Trabsa in Skhira (Sfax) via a high-pressure pipeline that runs beneath the olive fields adjacent to the field.
According to the data we have, the rate of gas flaring produced by the company in Tunisia between 2012 and 2022 amounted to about 0.09 billion cubic meters, resulting in carbon dioxide emissions of 0.2 million tons. The flaring rate was 0.0007 billion cubic meters in 2012 and increased to 0.006 billion cubic meters in 2022, indicating a significant rise in the flaring rate. This increase somewhat contradicts the company’s environmental policy charter, which emphasizes its commitment to protecting the environment and the health of its workers.
We tried to contact the Franco-Tunisian Petroleum Company via email to inquire about its policies for reducing gas flaring, but we did not receive a response to our questions.
Gas flaring is not limited to these two sites in Sfax; we can also include the Qubaiba El Hajeb site, owned by Thyna Petroleum Services TPS, which is jointly owned by the Norwegian company Panoro Energy (49%) and the Tunisian Company for Petroleum Activities (ETAP) (51%). This site is one of 5 concessions owned by the Norwegian company to exploit oil fields in the Sfax region. In 2021, total production reached 1.66 million barrels of oil.
Our field visit to the Qubaiba El Hajeb site confirmed the presence of flaring operations. The field is located near olive farms and is approximately 3.4 kilometers from the village of Qubaiba. According to project data, the gas flaring rate from this site amounted to about 0.04 billion cubic meters between 2012 and 2022, resulting in carbon dioxide emissions of 110 thousand tons.
Flaring: A Costly Waste of Gas with Economic Consequences!
According to the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Tracker for 2024, oil companies worldwide flared the largest amount of natural gas in five years in 2023, totalling about 148 billion cubic meters. This represents a 7% increase compared to 2022, even as crude oil production increased by only 1% in 2023.
Although Tunisia is not among the nine major oil-producing countries—such as Nigeria, Algeria, Iraq, Libya, Russia, and Iran—that account for 75% of global flaring activities, it still contributes to methane emissions and flaring operations. According to estimates from the GMRF, Tunisia flared 185.16 million cubic meters of gas in 2023, down from 279.13 million cubic meters in 2022.
This is happening as Tunisia faces a significant decline in gas production, dropping by 26% to reach 0.72 million tons by the end of July 2024, down from 0.98 million tons the last year, according to the monthly bulletin (July 2024) published by the National Observatory of Energy and Mines.
An article published on Flareintel, an application that uses satellites to track gas flaring locations worldwide, states that “North African countries, including Tunisia, Libya, Algeria, and Egypt, waste 23 billion cubic meters of gas annually through flaring, venting, and leaking. This amount is equivalent to 15% of Russian gas imports to the European Union.
The article also states that “there are enormous opportunities for gas collection (instead of flaring) in these countries, as flares can be mitigated through proven technology. Given that many gas pipelines in North Africa have spare capacity, there is potential for numerous commercially attractive projects, especially if a clear roadmap is established.”
Escalating Global Warming and Environmental Challenges
In addition to the economic losses, the waste of flared gas contributes significantly to global warming, serving as a major source of greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Notably, methane is even more detrimental to the ozone layer; the impact of one kilogram of methane on global warming is over 21 times greater than that of one kilogram of carbon dioxide when assessed over a century. This insight comes from a study published by the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Ibadan in Nigeria.
Flaring also leads to significant environmental issues, primarily causing what is known as “acid rain”. This phenomenon occurs when acidic gases are burned, transforming into sulfur oxides that combine with oxygen and water in the atmosphere. The resulting acid rain contaminates soil and water, leading to surface erosion. For example, acid rain from gas flaring has changed the vegetation cover in the Niger Delta region.
Scientific studies conducted in southeastern Nigeria—one of the highest gas flaring countries in the world—have demonstrated that the soil is rapidly losing its fertility and capacity for sustainable agriculture due to acidification caused by various pollutants associated with gas flaring. Moreover, the flaring operations have negatively impacted corn production, which has declined as a result of soil degradation. This information is supported by a scientific study titled “The Global Impact of Gas Flaring,” published in 2012 in the journal Scientific Research.
It should be noted that the four fields with the highest flaring emissions in Tunisia are:
Bir Ben Tartar:
Total Flaring Volume: Approximately 1.4 billion cubic meters
CO₂ Emissions: 3.6 million tons
Al-Burma:
Total Flaring Volume: Approximately 1.2 billion cubic meters
CO₂ Emissions: 3.1 million tons
Ashtart:
Total Flaring Volume: Approximately 0.7 billion cubic meters
CO₂ Emissions: 1.8 million tons
Arish:
Total Flaring Volume: Approximately 0.5 billion cubic meters
CO₂ Emissions: 1.4 million tons
Unfortunately, it was not possible to visit these areas as they are classified as “military zones”.
Gas Flaring in the Industrial Zone of Gabès
A massive cloud of white and orange smoke is visible 2 km from Gabès city (400 km from Tunis). This smoke primarily comes from the industrial zone, which is home to several facilities specializing in the fuel and chemical industries. The Gabès chemical complex is responsible for producing phosphate and converting it into phosphoric acid and fertilizers. However, it is notorious for polluting the surrounding area with the gases it releases, which include ammonia mixed with other harmful emissions.
Residents living near the industrial zone, whether in the municipalities of Ghannouch, Bouchamma or the district of Chott Essalam, try to ignore this suffocating smoke, which is intensified by the wind. However, this effort is in vain, as the strong odor and the breathing problems it causes—sometimes to the point of suffocation—cannot be overlooked. Additionally, the environmental impact on the crops in the neighboring oases is significant.
According to a 2018 study by the European Commission on the “Impact of Industrial Pollution on the Economy of the Gabès Region”, the chemical complex in Gabès is responsible for major pollutants, including sulfur dioxide (SO2), hydrogen fluoride (HF), nitrogen monoxide (NO), particulate matter (PM), ammonia (NH3), nitrogen oxides (NOx), hydrocarbons (HC) and carbon monoxide (CO).
In the midst of this concerning situation, there is a gas processing plant in the industrial zone of Gabès belonging to the Norwegian company OMV. This plant is connected via a pipeline to the Nawara natural gas production field in Tataouine, southern Tunisia, which the company owns in partnership with the Tunisian Company for Petroleum Activities.
This plant burns gas, as we observed during our field visit to the area, where we noted the presence of a chimney emitting a burning flame.
According to satellite data obtained from Skytruth, the flaring rate at the station amounted to 0.003 billion cubic meters between 2012 and 2022, causing carbon dioxide emissions of about 8,000 tons.
In total, the Norwegian company OMV, which is involved in the operation of eight oil and gas fields in Tunisia, contributed to the production of about 0.02 billion cubic meters in 2022, resulting in carbon dioxide emissions of about 47,000 tons.
At the same time, the Norwegian company joined the World Bank’s 2017 initiative, “Zero Routine Flaring by 2030” (ZRF). Based on this commitment, it has promised to “end routine flaring and venting operations at current operational sites by implementing all applicable solutions as soon as possible, and no later than 2030,” according to its website. Additionally, the company has pledged to cut annual direct CO2 emissions by around 1.5 million tons.
On the other hand, Norway has outlawed routine flaring for all of its oil fields since 1971. The Norwegian authorities only permit flaring and venting for safety reasons, which means that all Norwegian companies involved in the oil industry must have alternative gas disposal solutions.
This demonstrates that European companies that uphold their obligations in their home countries may not necessarily do the same in the countries where they operate outside their borders.
As a reminder, EU Regulation 1119/2021 mandates a commitment to achieving net zero emissions across the European Union by 2050. To this end, Article 15 strictly prohibits routine flaring and venting, except in special cases related to emergencies, breakdowns, technical requirements, or safety reasons.
Health Impacts of Flaring
About 4 km from the Norwegian company’s gas station in the industrial zone lies the municipality of Bouchemma. As soon as you enter, you feel the heavy polluted air and quickly experience difficulty breathing, along with irritation in the eyes and skin. However, Wassim, the owner of a hardware store there, says, “these effects are normal. We, the residents of Bouchemma, breathe polluted air every day, so much so that we have become accustomed to it, and it no longer bothers us.”
But that is not what we noticed during our visit to the primary health center in Bouchemma. While the medical staff refused to speak to us officially, one of the nurses told us that they often receive cases of people suffering from respiratory diseases such as asthma, as well as the thyroid gland, and there are also cases of leukemia or lung cancer. The nurse attributes these illnesses primarily to air pollution, particularly due to the “ammonia” gas coming from the chemical complex.
The damage to residents in the areas surrounding the industrial zone is not limited to health impacts but extends to agriculture in the neighboring oases. Farmer Mohamed complains about the harm done to his clover, onion and grape plants due to the gases emitted from the industrial zone, saying regretfully, “the leaves of the trees and plants turn yellow, dry up, and then the plants die, and we cannot do anything to save them.” The reporter herself observed the yellowing of the leaves during her tour of the oasis.
It is difficult to determine the extent of the environmental and health damage caused by the flaring carried out by the gas station in Gabès, owned by the Norwegian company, especially since the industrial zone also includes other polluting companies, such as the chemical complex, the Al KIMIA plant, and the Industries Chimiques du Fluor (ICF) in Gabès. However, the possibility of damage resulting from the flaring cannot be ruled out.
In this regard, fuel sector expert Ghazi Ben Jemaa believes that “even if the gas production station is located in an area that is already polluted, this does not absolve it of responsibility for contributing to air pollution through flaring operations.”
We tried to contact OMV via email to inquire about its policies on reducing flaring at its sites in Tunisia, but it did not respond to our questions.
Routine gas Flaring causes many health problems for residents living near oil and gas fields. “Flares contain known toxins, such as benzene, which pollute the air and cause respiratory issues like asthma and bronchitis,” according to the Rocky Mountain Institute, a U.S.-based non-profit organization focused on improving energy practices. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also announced that exposure to benzene causes acute leukemia and other blood disorders. This was further confirmed by the BBC in an investigation published in 2022, which highlighted the effects of gas flaring on populations in Iraq, where high rates of leukemia among children were recorded in the Rumaila area of Basra.
For its part, the Canadian Public Health Association stated in a 2000 report on gas flaring that these operations affect the human body’s immunity, lead to early death, cause reproductive disorders, and increase cancer rates in communities surrounding oil and gas fields.
Researchers at the Gillings School of Global Public Health, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Institute for the Environment, and the Environmental Defense Fund in the United States found that pollution from oil and gas venting and flaring led to health damages amounting to $7.4 billion, more than 700 premature deaths, and 73,000 asthma exacerbations in children annually. The study, published in 2024, reported that 360 of the 710 premature deaths “were attributable to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), ozone (O3), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2).”
The Urgent Need for Flaring Legislation in Tunisia
Despite their international obligations, many European companies operating in oil and gas fields in Tunisia continue to engage in routine gas flaring, benefiting from the absence of laws prohibiting or regulating this practice.
Companies in Tunisia are only required to submit a “study for the utilization of oil-related products, especially dissolved or associated gas” as part of the hydrocarbon field development plan. This study must be provided upfront to obtain a field exploitation concession, as stipulated in Article 47 of the Hydrocarbons Code.
The National Agency for Environmental Protection (ANPE), responsible for monitoring the compliance of industrial and petroleum facilities with environmental protection regulations, especially air quality, is unable to monitor flaring operations. “In the absence of a law prohibiting flaring, we cannot monitor the companies that engage in it. We only intervene in the event of an accident or a serious gas leak,” says an official at the agency who preferred to remain anonymous.
The Tunisian Company for Petroleum Activities (ETAP) also participates in gas flaring operations, firstly as a partner of most European companies operating in the oil and gas sector in Tunisia, and secondly because it fully owns some oil fields.
According to our data, the state-owned company participated in flaring gas at a rate of 2 billion cubic meters between 2012 and 2022. This is notable given that it is one of the companies involved in the Zero Routine Flaring by 2030 (ZRF) initiative.
Although this initiative requires its participants to automatically publish information about their contribution to routine flaring, ETAP has not released this data since the date of its signing, according to the World Bank website.
We contacted ETAP via email to ask about the flaring operations it conducts, but it did not answer our questions.
Ghazi Ben Jemaa, an expert in the hydrocarbons sector, asserts that “the Tunisian Company for Petroleum Activities should have set an example in fulfilling international commitments to reduce flaring and should lead by example for its European partners in Tunisia by ensuring the establishment of a legal framework to regulate flaring operations.”
