Many operators are overwhelmed or confused by the 2024 Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP) 2.0 reporting deadlines. In a previous article, we talked about what happens after joining OGMP 2.0 and how Highwood can support in your existing inventory, measurement & technology strategy, data analysis & reconciliation, and reporting. In this article we discuss what your organization should prepare for this year. Whether it’s your first year reporting, you’re reaching the Gold Standard Pathway, or are prepared to achieve the Gold Standard of Reporting, planning is critical to meeting a fast-approaching May 31st deadline.
Early Engagement with Non-Operated Assets Drives Long-Term Success
As part of the implementation report, a pathway for how your company plans to reach Gold Standard by Year 3 and Year 5 is required. Engagement with assets, both operated and non-operated, is critical to ensure actions promised are feasible and reasonable for your teams. Implementation plans will include a timeline of which assets will reach Level 5, by which year, and a detailed description of the actions, measurement campaigns, and technology selections planned to be conducted to get there. This may require some investigation, awareness education, and training to bring those non-operated companies up to speed on the requirements. Part of the pathway to Gold Standard needs to include an explicit and credible plan for engaging with non-operated assets. It is not enough to say that you will work with them. A clear and purposeful engagement plan will drive successful outcomes. Note that if your company’s equity share in non-operated assets is less than 5%, they still need to be reported as excluded with justification. Make sure you have an effective tracking system in place for all non-operated assets.
New OGMP 2.0 Signatories: Reporting Requirements Still Apply
Companies that are in a place to achieve Gold Standard Pathway may be in their first or second year of reporting and need to provide credible UNEP-approved implementation plans outlining their proposed pathway to Gold Standard in future years. Even if this is your first year of reporting, there may be expectations you are unaware of. Here are key items to consider in preparing your first (or second) OGMP 2.0 report:
- Reporting on All Assets: Although initial years don’t require specific actions to progress to level 4/5 for non-operated assets, you still need to report methane emissions on all operated and non-operated assets that make up at least 95% of total methane emissions.
- Implementation Plans: You need to prepare a pathway for how your company plans to reach Gold Standard by Year 3. Engagement with assets, both operated and non-operated, is critical to ensure actions promised are feasible and reasonable for your teams. Implementation plans will include a timeline of which assets will reach Level 5, by which year, and a detailed description of the actions, measurement campaigns, and technology selections planned to be conducted to get there.
- Methodologies: Implementation plans outline your planned actions and pathway to reach the Gold Standard. They also include a detailed account of how the current year’s emissions were estimated including which sources were measurement based, or which emissions factors and methodologies were applied.
- Targets: Companies also need to consider appropriate targets to commit to and report on how their targets were determined, including the baseline reference year applied. Careful assessment of feasible targets for your company will help set you up for success in the future.
Emissions reconciliation is a complex and time-intensive process
Operators reaching Gold Standard reporting this year need to have their site-level measurements reconciled with their bottom-up inventory estimates. A level 5 reporter’s bottom-up inventories need to be comprised of representative measurements for at least 90% of methane emissions. Here are key considerations when preparing for this year’s report and why companies need to be proactive to have a successful reporting season:
- Reconciliation takes time: Site-level emissions need to be reconciled with bottom-up estimates. This can require investigation by going back to the asset teams to determine causes of any variances. Extrapolation of measurements is complex and the effort for processing measurement data should not be underestimated.
- Quantifying uncertainty: UNEP’s expectations for quantifying uncertainty will likely increase this reporting year. Operators should consider the uncertainty associated with the technologies deployed, as well as the uncertainty associated with the extrapolation of the sub-set of measurements. This is a challenging task, and operators are expected to clearly lay out their approach in their reporting plans.
- Improvements: Even if you’ve already reached Gold Standard (congrats!) companies are required to continually improve. Early planning for measurement campaigns and proactively reviewing incoming data are essential for successful implementation.
For easy reference, we provide a recommended example for how proactive companies may want to plan their OGMP 2.0 reporting activities as an annual cycle to ensure enough time is allocated to reconciliation and reporting activities to meet required deadlines: 
How Highwood Can Help
If you are struggling with OGMP 2.0 requirements, we can help! Highwood has extensive of experience working with clients in all stages of their OGMP 2.0 reporting. We can support in developing implementation plans, assessing the materiality of emissions & key source categories, performing reconciliation, and completing required reporting documentation. Below are items that set Highwood apart for supporting you in your journey:
- We’ve done this before. Highwood understands what UNEP is looking for in implementation plans and has supported responding to feedback from various UNEP reviewers.
- Highwood’s EIP software for reconciliation will automate the reconciliation process so you can easily scale to all operations. The software will aggregate and extrapolate site level measurements, evaluate uncertainty, and directly compare against your bottom-up inventories with clear, easy-to-use data visualizations.
Contact us today for more information and we’d be happy to connect you with the right experts internally to discuss your needs further. …
