In this month’s Highwood Bulletin, we cover significant developments across the methane landscape. From MethaneSAT’s communication loss and industry responses to evolving climate frameworks, to new regulatory guidance emerging across multiple regions. We also highlight fresh collaboration between SAGA Wisdom and Highwood, expanded training resources, enhanced EIP capabilities, and the launch of Monday Morning Methane. Whether you’re navigating EU implementation deadlines, exploring new certification pathways, or staying current with the latest measurement protocols, this edition delivers the insights you need to stay informed.
MethaneSAT Loses Contact
The MethaneSAT satellite, a key initiative by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) to track methane emissions, has lost contact. The satellite, which was launched in March 2024, ceased communications on June 20, 2025, and has subsequently lost power. While the exact cause of the failure is still under investigation, the EDF has stated that the satellite is likely unrecoverable. (Read more here)
SAGA Wisdom Bundles with Highwood Emissions
SAGA Wisdom has partnered with Highwood Emissions Management to build three targeted training modules that help teams align with new requirements and lead beyond them. These curated modules repackage Highwood’s trusted methane curriculum on SAGA Wisdom’s platform into role-specific learning paths, helping teams across organizations develop practical, policy-aligned skills in measurement, monitoring, and mitigation. (Learn more here)
EU Warns Nine Countries Over Methane Rule Implementation
The European Commission issued formal notices to Bulgaria, Estonia, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Lithuania, Austria, Slovakia, and Finland for failing to meet the February 5 deadline under EU Methane Regulation (EU 2024/1787). These Member States now have two months to establish required authorities or face potential Court of Justice referrals. (Read more here)
Super-Majors Abandon SBTi over Anti-O&G Stance
Shell, Norway’s Aker BP, and Canada’s Enbridge withdrew from the Science Based Targets initiative’s expert advisory group after draft proposals effectively demanded an end to new oil and gas developments. The SBTi has since paused work on its oil and gas standard following these high-profile departures, citing internal “capacity considerations.” (Read more here)
IGU to EU: Please Listen to the Operators
The International Gas Union co-signed an open letter urging the European Commission to engage exporting countries and industry in overcoming implementation hurdles for the EU Methane Regulation. The letter emphasizes a need for collaborative capacity building, harmonized measurement protocols, and aligned abatement strategies to drive methane reductions across the global gas supply chain. (Read the letter here)
OGCI and Highwood Release Phase 2 of Methane Library
The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative has expanded its methane library with new features and content designed to accelerate emissions reductions across the oil and gas industry. The enhanced platform, developed with support from Highwood, provides operators with improved tools and resources for methane management and mitigation strategies. (Read more here)
Report Urges EUMR Import Approach for South Korea
A new report reveals that South Korea’s imported oil and gas generated 30 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent in upstream methane emissions, 17X higher than the 1.7 million tonnes emitted domestically. The study urges South Korea to adopt EU-style import regulations, noting that methane intensity from Korean imports significantly exceeds international benchmarks. (Read more here)
Report: Natural Gas Certification by IEA
The International Energy Agency released its analysis on prospects for natural gas certification, outlining potential policy actions including international collaboration on harmonization and setting minimum certification standards. The report positions certification as a tool to enhance transparency and performance on greenhouse gas emissions across natural gas supply chains. (Read more here)
Report: Methane Guidance for O&G Debt Structuring
The Methane Finance Working Group has developed new guidance for incorporating methane considerations into oil and gas debt structuring and investment decisions. The framework aims to help financial institutions better assess and manage methane-related risks in their energy sector portfolios. (Read more here)
Report: ASEAN Methane Management Roadmap
The ASEAN Centre for Energy, supported by ASCOPE and the World Bank Group, released a comprehensive roadmap for reducing methane emissions across ASEAN’s oil and gas sector. The strategy focuses on enhanced monitoring, standardized reporting, certification programs, and cost-effective abatement strategies, with major emitters including Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. (Read more here)
Methane Guiding Principles Initiative to Retire
The Methane Guiding Principles initiative announced its retirement after facilitating voluntary methane reduction commitments across the oil and gas industry since 2017. The initiative’s closure marks a transition toward more regulatory and market-based approaches to methane management. (Read more here)
GTI Energy Publishes Version 3 of the Veritas Assurance Protocol
GTI Energy released the third version of its Veritas Assurance Protocol, providing updated standards for methane measurement, reporting, and verification in the oil and gas sector. The enhanced protocol aims to improve accuracy and consistency in methane emissions reporting across industry operations. (Read more here)
Conference: EEMDL Early Bird
Early bird registration is now open for the EEMDL 2025 Annual Event, convened by The University of Texas. The event brings together thought leaders from academia, industry, and the policy sector. Highwood team members will be attending, and we hope to see you there! (Register here)
Conference: CH4 Connections
Join Highwood at CH4 Connections 2025, a premier methane-focused conference hosted by GTI Energy and Colorado State University Energy Institute. The event promotes open exchange of ideas from leading thought leaders, academic researchers, industry experts, regulators, policymakers, and environmental advocates. It also features the latest developments in methane detection, quantification, and mitigation strategies. (Learn more here)
Wake Up and Smell the Methane
Thomas Fox, CEO at Highwood Emissions, launched Monday Morning Methane, a weekly series sharing key insights, trends, and headlines from the fast-moving world of methane emissions. Whether you’re tracking OGMP 2.0, EUMR, or the latest technology developments, tune in every Monday for essential industry updates. Search the #MondayMorningMethane hashtag to access the first twelve installments.
Highwood: New EIP Feature Enables Offshore Reconciliation
Highwood launched Instantaneous Reconciliation in EIP, complementing existing annualized reconciliation with an OGMP 2.0 workflow designed for large, centralized facilities like offshore platforms. This new feature enhances our reconciliation capabilities to meet OGMP 2.0, Veritas, and MiQ requirements for different facility types. (Learn more about EIP here)
Highwood: Don’t Miss Our Research Digest
The 16th edition of Highwood’s Research Digest was published on June 18, 2025, highlighting recent methane emissions research focused on measurement methods, quantification techniques, and emission source identification. This free resource keeps industry professionals informed on cutting-edge scientific developments in methane management. (Read here)
Highwood: Online Methane Courses Grow
Our expanding library of online methane courses now includes comprehensive training on reconciliation, measurement-informed inventories, OGMP 2.0, methane technology, methane basics, and voluntary initiatives. These on-demand courses provide flexible learning opportunities for industry professionals at all levels. (Explore courses here)
Want to Write for our Bulletin? We’re seeking guest writers to contribute Feature Articles to the Highwood Bulletin for our ~2,500 subscribers and ~10,000 LinkedIn followers. We welcome unbiased, apolitical, constructive posts on emissions management topics, with full author credit and profile pages on our website, including backlinking opportunities.
