Concurrent variation in oil and gas methane emissions and  oil price during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract. Methane emissions associated with the production, transport, and use of oil and natural gas increase the climatic impacts of energy use; however, little is known about how emissions vary temporally and with commodity prices. We present airborne and ground-based data, supported by satellite observations, to measure weekly to monthly changes in total methane emissions in the United States' Permian Basin during a period of volatile oil prices associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. As oil prices declined from ∼ USD 60 to USD 20 per barrel, emissions changed concurrently from 3.3 % to 1.9 % of natural gas production; as prices partially recovered, emissions increased back to near initial values. Concurrently, total oil and natural gas production only declined by ∼ 10 % from the peak values seen in the months prior to the crash. Activity data indicate that a rapid decline in well development and subsequent effects on associated gas flaring and midstream infrastructure throughput are the likely drivers of temporary emission reductions. Our results, along with past satellite observations, suggest that under more typical price conditions, the Permian Basin is in a state of overcapacity in which rapidly growing associated gas production exceeds midstream capacity and leads to high methane emissions.

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Concurrent variation in oil and gas methane emissions and oil price during the COVID-19 pandemic

10.5194/acp-2020-1175 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

David R. Lyon ◽

Benjamin Hmiel ◽

Ritesh Gautam ◽

Mark Omara ◽

Kate Roberts ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Natural Gas ◽

Commodity Prices ◽

Oil Prices ◽

The United States ◽

Methane Emissions ◽

Gas Production ◽

Satellite Observations ◽

Permian Basin ◽

Natural Gas Production ◽

Oil And Natural Gas

Abstract. Methane emissions associated with the production, transport, and use of oil and natural gas increase the climatic impacts of energy use; however, little is known about how emissions vary temporally and with commodity prices. We present airborne and ground-based data, supported by satellite observations, to measure weekly to monthly changes in total methane emissions in the United States’ Permian Basin during a period of volatile oil prices associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. As oil prices declined from ~$ 60 to $ 20 per barrel, emissions changed concurrently from 3.4 % to 1.5 % of gas production; as prices partially recovered, emissions increased back to near initial values. Concurrently, total oil and natural gas production only declined by a maximum of ~10 % from the peak values seen in the months prior to the crash. Activity data indicate that a rapid decline in well development and subsequent effects on associated gas flaring and midstream infrastructure throughput are the likely drivers of temporary emission reductions. Our results, along with past satellite observations, suggest that under more typical price conditions, the Permian Basin is in a state of overcapacity in which rapidly growing natural gas production exceeds midstream capacity and leads to high methane emissions.

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Daily Satellite Observations of Methane from Oil and Gas Production Regions in the United States

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-11404 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Pieternel Levelt ◽

Pepijn Veefkind ◽

Esther Roosenbrand ◽

John Lin ◽

Jochen Landgraf ◽

...

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Natural Gas ◽

Oil And Gas ◽

The United States ◽

Methane Emissions ◽

Gas Production ◽

Oil And Gas Production ◽

Natural Gas Production ◽

Oil And Natural Gas

<p>Production of oil and natural gas in North America is at an all-time high due to the development and use of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Methane emissions associated with this industrial activity are a concern because of the contribution to climate radiative forcing. We present new measurements from the space-based TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) launched in 2017 that show methane enhancements over production regions in the United States. Using methane and NO<sub>2</sub> column measurements from the new TROPOMI instrument, we show that emissions from oil and gas production in the Uintah and Permian Basins can be observed in the data from individual overpasses. This is a vast improvement over measurements from previous satellite instruments, which typically needed to be averaged over a year or more to quantify trends and regional enhancements in methane emissions. In the Uintah Basin in Utah, TROPOMI methane columns correlated with in-situ measurements, and the highest columns were observed over the deepest parts of the basin, consistent with the accumulation of emissions underneath inversions. In the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico, methane columns showed maxima over regions with the highest natural gas production and were correlated with nitrogen-dioxide columns at a ratio that is consistent with results from in-situ airborne measurements. The improved detail provided by TROPOMI will likely enable the timely monitoring from space of methane and NO2 emissions associated with regular oil and natural gas production.</p>

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Quantifying methane emissions from the largest oil-producing basin in the United States from space

Science Advances ◽

10.1126/sciadv.aaz5120 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 6 (17) ◽

pp. eaaz5120 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Yuzhong Zhang ◽

Ritesh Gautam ◽

Sudhanshu Pandey ◽

Mark Omara ◽

Joannes D. Maasakkers ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Natural Gas ◽

Methane Flux ◽

The United States ◽

Methane Emissions ◽

Gas Production ◽

Leakage Rate ◽

Permian Basin ◽

Satellite Measurements ◽

Oil And Natural Gas ◽

Oil Gas

Using new satellite observations and atmospheric inverse modeling, we report methane emissions from the Permian Basin, which is among the world’s most prolific oil-producing regions and accounts for >30% of total U.S. oil production. Based on satellite measurements from May 2018 to March 2019, Permian methane emissions from oil and natural gas production are estimated to be 2.7 ± 0.5 Tg a−1, representing the largest methane flux ever reported from a U.S. oil/gas-producing region and are more than two times higher than bottom-up inventory-based estimates. This magnitude of emissions is 3.7% of the gross gas extracted in the Permian, i.e., ~60% higher than the national average leakage rate. The high methane leakage rate is likely contributed by extensive venting and flaring, resulting from insufficient infrastructure to process and transport natural gas. This work demonstrates a high-resolution satellite data–based atmospheric inversion framework, providing a robust top-down analytical tool for quantifying and evaluating subregional methane emissions.

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