Emission Possible : Navigating the New Era of Methane Regulation with Qube Technologies

Executive summary

• The US EPA Super Emitter Program poses new challenges to the oil and gas industry. Effective 2024, operators could be held publicly accountable for large emission events using third party unites, such as satellites.

• Monitoring technologies which detect & quantify emissions sooner can prevent small, manageable leaks from becoming qualified super-emitter events under the rule.

• Qube Technologies’ continuous monitoring platform can help operators limit super-emitters events, time bound events if they do occur and avoid negative publicity and potential penalties through real-time detection, localization, and quantification of methane leaks.

Background

Methane is a powerful greenhouse responsible for one third of current anthropogenic climate warming. Oil and natural gas operations are the source of nearly 30 percent of all methane emissions in the U.S.1

On December 2, 2023, EPA announced its final OOOOb ruling aimed at reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. The rule establishes new source performance standards (NSPS) and emissions guidelines for methane and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from new or modified oil and gas sources; new emissions guidelines for states to follow in designing and executing implementation plans to cover existing sources; and a new Super Emitter Program. The rule takes effect in 2024.

EPA developed the Super Emitter Program in response to findings that approximately 50 percent of all methane emissions come from large, irregular events2.

The Super Emitter Program is designed to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas industry by incentivizing best emissions management practices, the adoption of more effective monitoring technologies, and by publicizing super-emitter events and the responsible operators.

Operators must now adapt their leak detection and repair (LDAR) approach to comply with the new regulations and avoid unwanted publicity from super-emitter events under the new rule.

This paper discusses:

• How a super-emitter event is defined and enforced.

• The benefits of continuous emissions monitoring under the Super Emitter Program.

• How Qube Technologies’ continuous monitoring platform can help operators prevent super-emitters from occurring and real-time detection that can limit the duration and severity of fugitive emissions.