Statoil tests methane detection technology

Statoil is testing a new technology that detects methane leaks at one of its production facilities in the US. It will evaluate Quanta3’s device under different conditions, with continuous detection […]

Statoil is testing a new technology that detects methane leaks at one of its production facilities in the US.

It will evaluate Quanta3’s device under different conditions, with continuous detection of methane expected to help accelerate ongoing initiatives to reduce the company’s emissions.

According to the US Environmental Defence Fund (EDF), around 25% of today’s warming is driven by emissions of methane from multiple sources, including oil and gas development.

In the US, the gas is emitted across the oil and gas supply chain, at a rate of more than 9.8 million metric tons per year.

The technology was developed through the Methane Detectors Challenge (MDC), a partnership between EDF, oil and gas firms, technology developers and other experts.

The collaboration aims to bring new technologies to market that can enable 24-hour monitoring, cutting leak detection time and emissions.

Andrea Machado, Senior Researcher in Statoil’s shale oil and gas research and development team said: “Further qualification of this technology will be performed by long term deployment across various onshore facilities throughout 2017. This initiative can be a step change in how the shale oil and gas industry will monitor fugitive emissions in the future.

“It’s a win-win situation; implementing continuous methane detection can reduce loss of valuable product and ensure a cleaner environment.”

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