After backing an economy-wide price on carbon emissions, the American Petroleum Institute (API) on Thursday released a new template for oil and gas companies to standardize greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reporting.

API, the largest U.S. oil and gas trade association, is asking energy companies to track emissions and voluntarily disclose to the public details, including levels of flared natural gas. The tracking would help companies in meeting their environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives. The goal is to enable investors and the public to compare a given company’s progress against its peers.

“We really believe this will drive true consistency” across the oil and gas sector, API’s Aaron Padilla, manager of climate and ESG policy, told reporters during a...