In this month’s bulletin, I cover a new FAQ for EU methane rules, our new report on methane data for banks, China’s new methane satellite, optimizing EPA’s methane fee, MethaneSAT reconciliation, UNEP’s MARS, a McKinsey report on methane reduction costs, and much more. Thanks as always for reading and please share your feedback and thoughts!
Europe publishes FAQ for methane import rules
New information on the methane import rule was released by the EU in the form of an FAQ, which underscores strict compliance expectations, requiring importers to ensure accurate data flows through their supply chain and reinforcing OGMP 2.0 level 5 with third-party verification as a reliable compliance path. Read the entire document here.
Methane data for financial institutions
As the world moves to cleaner energy, financial institutions play a critical role in shaping the path forward for the oil and gas sector. Our new report explores the growing need for accurate methane data, the role of measurement-informed inventories, and how existing frameworks including OGMP 2.0 and EU regulations can facilitate meaningful collaboration between banks and industry. Download the free report here.
China launches methane monitoring satellite
China launched the Lijian-1 Y5 rocket, deploying 15 satellites, including the Xiguang-1 04, the country’s first high-resolution commercial satellite for methane monitoring. The satellite was developed by Xiopm SPACE, a company under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Click here to learn more.
Understanding and optimizing EPA’s methane fee
In a special Highwood blog, Chris Nixon explains EPA’s finalized Waste Emissions Charge (WEC) rule. Effective in 2025, it levies a fee on methane emissions exceeding thresholds, starting at $900/ton and rising to $1500/ton by 2027, while allowing netting across facilities owned by the same parent company to offset obligations. Read more about the WEC and how Highwood is helping to minimize exposure for our clients here.
MethaneSAT publishes preliminary reconciliation results
Environmental Defence Fund’s MethaneSAT has released initial preliminary findings that compare bottom-up methane inventory estimates to measurements acquired by satellites. Like most past analyses, a large discrepancy is found. Have a look at the data here.
Update on UNEP’s Methane Alert and Response System
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Methane Alert and Response System (MARS) has issued 1,200 notifications of major methane emissions over the past two years, yet only 1% have prompted action. Despite commitments under the Global Methane Pledge to reduce emissions by 30% by 2030, the low response rate indicates a significant gap between detection and mitigation efforts. Learn more here.
McKinsey reports on costs of methane abatement
A new report by McKinsey shows that upstream O&G can implement cost-effective methane abatement and flaring reduction technologies that could cut up to two gigatons of CO₂e per year. Achieving this reduction requires approximately $200 billion in investment, with $120 billion allocated for infrastructure to transport recovered methane to existing pipelines or demand centers. Read their report here.
Don’t miss our Research Digest
Highwood’s Research Digest highlights recent methane emissions research, focusing on advancements in measurement methods, quantification, and the identification of emission sources within the oil and gas sector. Key studies discuss methane emissions inventories, the integration of satellite data with ground-based measurements, and the identification of significant emitters, emphasizing the need for improved data-driven approaches for emissions management. Read the Research Digest here.
Highwood grows online methane courses
Five courses are now available online via our partners at SAGA Wisdom. Education is a core part of Highwood’s mission and is necessary to enable the success of achieving rapid methane emissions reduction amid constant change and significant complexity. Explore our courses here.
Highwood awarded $2.2mn for reconciliation software
Emissions Reduction Alberta has awarded more than $44 million in their Emerging Innovators Challenge, including $2.23 million to Highwood Emissions Management. The funds will support our $4.46 million project to validate and further develop our Emissions Intelligence Platform, which enables users to perform reconciliation and build measurement-informed methane inventories. Learn more here.
Want to write for the Bulletin?
We’re always looking for guest writers who would like to contribute a Feature Article to the Highwood Bulletin. Please reach out if you’d like to write an unbiased, apolitical, solution-agnostic article for our ~2500 subscribers and ~10,000 LinkedIn followers on an emissions management topic. Please reach out to our content team with your idea. Authors are fully credited and have a profile page on our website (we are happy to backlink).
Join our team! Highwood is hiring!
We currently have multiple exciting career postings on our website. If you have experience in methane emissions management and you’re looking for a career change, please reach out! Check out our active opportunities on our website by clicking here.
