Last week EPA released its annual data from large emitters, called the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP). It is not a comprehensive account of all methane emissions (for that, check out our methane synthesis paperpublished earlier this year) but it does provided us with an important snapshot of 2017 oil and gas methane emissions. Reduction trend not nearly… Keep reading →
Last month, we had the opportunity to speak about methane and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) investing with Michael Cappucci, Senior Vice President of Compliance and Sustainable Investing at Harvard Management Company (HMC).An early leader in ESG investing, HMC was the first U.S. university endowment to sign the UN-supported PRI ESG investing initiative in 2014. HMC manages… Keep reading →
Last October, the 10 CEOs of major oil and gas producers, including BP, China National Petroleum and Saudi Aramco, announced an aspiration to reach near zero methane emissions from their companies’ natural gas value chains. They pledged, as part of their participation in the Oil & Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI), to work together on a target that… Keep reading →
Four years ago, I stood in the centralized data command center of an American oil and gas company, watching a former colleague remotely adjust infrastructure at wellsites thousands of miles away because an algorithm detected a potential failure. This was the first time I personally witnessed the power of the “digital oilfield.” Essentially, the “digital… Keep reading →
Let’s make three quick points following release of a new methane emissions report from the Environmental Defense Fund: Natural Gas’ Benefits Confirmed The report’s findings reflect the fact methane emissions were low in 2015. According to EPA, methane emissions from natural gas production are down 14 percent since 1990, while natural gas output increased more than 50… Keep reading →
Recently, some in the oil and gas industry have expressed questions about an EDF analysis that estimates methane emissions in Pennsylvania to be five times higher than what companies report to the state. Pennsylvania is the nation’s second largest producer of natural gas. Understanding how much methane and other harmful pollutants may be leaking from the… Keep reading →
What may be becoming the world’s largest oil field may also be the world’s largest test for the oil and gas industry’s commitments to setting targets for driving down methane emissions. Several major oil and gas producers, including BP and XTO, have announced strategies in recent months to limit methane emissions. And several more including Shell, Pemex and… Keep reading →
Over the past months more than 400,000 Americans weighed in on a proposal by Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke to gut the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Methane and Natural Gas Waste Prevention Rule. And more than 98 percent of the comments received urged BLM to keep the strong rule in place to force oil and… Keep reading →
With upcoming annual meetings full of shareholder resolutions calling on companies to set greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets, EDF released “Taking Aim”, a new paper explaining why methane targets are the next frontier for the oil and gas industry and establishing five keys for strong targets. The paper explains how companies that set targets are more likely… Keep reading →
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its annual update to the 2016 U.S. Inventory of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHGI) yesterday, showing a slight decrease in total greenhouse gas emissions from 2015 to 2016. Methane, a potent greenhouse gas and the main constituent of natural gas, is responsible for roughly a quarter of global warming we see… Keep reading →
