This research digest highlights new work on methane measurement, mitigation, and emissions intensity across the oil and gas sector. Studies examine top-down benchmarking of U.S. methane inventories, satellite observations of marginal wells and Algerian production, methane import standards, mitigation opportunities in Nigeria, controlled-release testing, offshore quantification challenges, and distribution-system measurements.
Top-Down Benchmarking in the US
US Methane inventories published by the US EPA, NOAA, and European Commission’s JRC, are compared against satellite-based estimates from GOSAT data. The authors state that NOAA and GOSAT oil and gas emissions estimates agree. However, they report that GOSAT estimates exceed EPA and JRC estimates, particularly in Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. The study recommends targeted measurement campaigns here.
Marginal Producing Wells are Higher Methane Intensity
Satellite data from MethaneSAT is analyzed across 80% of US onshore production. Marginal production well pads (<15 boe/day), contributing to 5% of national production, are found to have more than ten times the methane intensity of higher-producing wells. The authors present marginal wells as a major mitigation opportunity in the US here.
Limitations of Net Methane Mitigated by Gas Import Standards
A globally integrated model is used to assess the effectiveness of energy import standards in methane mitigation. The study finds that import standards can reduce emissions by approximately 60% in major importers. However, the authors caution that high methane intensity energy exports getting displaced to unconstrained markets lowers the net global methane reductions to only 30%. The authors underscore the importance of methane associated with imported gas here.
Methane Recovery in Nigeria Economically Viable
Implementation of two technologies, vapour recovery units and pressure swing adsorption, for fugitive emissions mitigation in Nigeria’s production sector is assessed. The authors report that methane recovery in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry has the potential for economic viability under base pricing assumptions here.
Methane Intensity for Algerian Production
MethaneSAT data is used to quantify methane emissions from 73% of onshore production in Algeria. Production normalized methane intensities are estimated at 0.5, 1.7, and 6.9% for the three regions investigated. The authors recommend continued basin level monitoring in Algeria with EU intensity thresholds pending, here.
Single Blind Release Testing in France
Five methane measurement systems are tested at the TotalEnergies TADI facility in France: three vehicle-based and two aircraft-based systems. Quantification accuracy across the systems varied significantly, with parity plot slopes ranging from 0.38 to 1.04. The authors find that low wind conditions are particularly challenging and recommend utilizing high-quality meteorological data here.
Challenges in Quantifying Offshore Methane Emissions
Conditions required to reliably quantify methane emissions over water are analyzed. The research discusses a strong dependence on atmospheric stratification: Well-mixed conditions, similar to onshore conditions, are favorable for measurement. However, increasing atmospheric stratification makes quantification of plumes increasingly unreliable. The author cautions that offshore methane quantification is not universally achievable here.
Riddick, S. N. (2026). Conditions for Valid Offshore Methane Quantification. Eng, 7(8), 419.
Component-Level Measurements at Distribution Stations
Natural gas distribution stations in Calgary, Alberta, are studied over 7 months. Both component- and facility-level surveys are analyzed and compared to conventional estimates. Measurement-based estimates exceeded emission factor-based estimates by as much as 148 times. The authors attribute most of the difference to fugitives, venting, and incomplete combustion here.
