This week’s Highwood Bulletin features news from OGCI, funding for orphaned wells, new methane regulations in Colombia, expansion of EO100, new guidance for flaring, Highwood and Integrated Sustainability partner up, new AER Alt-FEMPs, a new U.S. member to OGMP 2.0, GTI launches Open Hydrogen Initiative, Highwood’s pipeline report translated to Chinese, conferences, funding opportunities, career opportunities at Highwood, and more!
OGCI is All-In on Net Zero
The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative, a CEO-led consortium of major oil and gas producers, announced recently that all member companies have committed to net zero. The targets cover Scope 1 and 2 emissions for operated assets. Read the details of each company’s commitment here.
U.S. Announces $1.15 Billion to Plug Orphaned Wells
Orphaned oil and gas wells exist in at least 26 states, and these states are now collectively eligible to access $1.15 billion U.S. in clean-up funds announced by the Biden administration. It is estimated that there are more than 130,000 orphaned wells in the U.S., and this number is expected to grow. Learn more here.
Colombia Finalizes Regulations for O&G Methane
On February 11, Colombia became the first country in South America to implement methane regulations for the oil and gas industry. The rules, which target fugitive emissions, vented emissions, and flaring and introduces regulatory leak detection and repair (LDAR), among other requirements. Read more about the new rules and a history of their development here.
EO100 Moves Down Supply Chain
The Equitable Origin EO100 natural gas certification scheme has become increasingly popular in recent years and is now expanding. In addition to production, EO100 will now cover gathering/boosting and processing operations. Unlike other certification programs, EO100 covers not just emissions, but all of ESG. Learn more here. Confused about all these different certifications? Read our free report here.
Report: IPIECA Publishes Flaring Management Guidance
A new report by IPIECA, IOGP, and GGRF provides guidance to help the oil and gas industry manage flaring, an important source of greenhouse gas emissions. While various companies and countries have committed to eliminate flaring, better flare management in the meantime can go a long way. Download the guidance by clicking here.
AER Announces New Alternative LDAR Programs
The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) is a global leader in promoting and approving the use of new methane detection and quantification technologies (i.e., Alt-FEMPs or Alt-LDAR). Recently, the AER updated their website with a range of new approvals, including Canada’s first approved continuous monitoring program, which Highwood helped build with Enhance Energy and Qube Technologies. Check out the updated list here.
Crescent Energy joins OGMP 2.0
The Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP) 2.0 has a new member from Houston: Crescent Energy. OGMP 2.0 is a growing methane reporting standard consisting of more than 70 companies, but only a few from the U.S. As part of OGMP 2.0, Crescent Energy will work towards the Level 5 Gold Standard, in which top-down and bottom-up methane measurements must be reconciled. Read more here.
GTI Announces Hydrogen Carbon Intensity Initiative
The Open Hydrogen Initiative (OHI) was launched on February 16th by Gas Technology Institute and S&P Global Platts to foster greater transparency and improved methodology around hydrogen carbon intensity tracking and disclosure. The OHI is a multi-stakeholder effort to create credible, open-source tools to bolster hydrogen’s credibility as a low-carbon energy source. Read more here.
Conference: Highwood to Participate in Pipeline Methane Symposium
This April 19 and 20, Highwood will be presenting at the Pipeline Methane Emissions Symposium: Detection, Quantification and Mitigation Conference held by EUCI. Thomas Fox, Highwood’s President, will be giving a 45-minute talk entitled Assessing the Effectiveness of Emerging Detection and Quantification Technologies. Jessica Shumlich, Highwood’s CEO, will be moderating a panel entitled Quantifiable Methane Emissions Reporting. Learn more and register here.
Report: Highwood Publishes Free Report on Pipeline Methane Detection Technologies
**Update: Translated to Chinese** Methane emissions from pipelines are of increasing interest to industry, regulators, and end users as they seek to understand the carbon intensity of natural gas across the supply chain. In recent years, there has been significant innovation in methane detection technology for detecting and quantifying methane emissions from gathering, transmission, and distribution pipelines. In a new report, Highwood Emissions Management provides an overview of commercially available methods for detecting natural gas leaks from pipelines. Download the free report here and catch some press here.
Highwood Announces Partnership with Integrated Sustainability
We are excited to enhance our ESG services in partnership with Integrated Sustainability (IS). With leading expertise in emission quantification and reporting, Highwood complements the existing ESG services offered by IS to simplify ESG reporting. Contact us to learn more.
Emissions Reduction Fund is (Once Again) Open for Business
Canada’s Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) has had various setbacks that have frustrated just about everyone involved. After closing unexpectedly just before the application deadline in December, the $675MM Onshore program is now back and open for applications. Applications may be submitted until March 31st 2022 – reach out to Highwood if you’d like help designing a project and securing funding. Read more about the program here.
Join our Team! Highwood is Hiring!
Highwood is always looking for bright folks who want to help us change the world for the better. If you have experience in greenhouse gas emissions management and you’re looking for a career change, please reach out!
