Flaring volumes slumped in 2020 as demand plummeted. However, with a rise in production levels slated for 2021, flaring and venting are expected to climb to pre-covid levels, according to the Environmental Defense Fund. This isn’t good news – for the business, for society, or for the climate. Investors and neighbouring communities are increasingly demanding that companies respond with more than words. Recently deals have been broken when European companies could not be seen by a sceptical public to buy or condone products from American companies caught flaring. Petrogenium, with over 100 years of combined experience in flaring reduction and gas capture, can show the way.
Clients are listening. On a recent Petrogenium engagement in Asia, the goal was to reduce flaring by 75%. This was achieved by examining systems and making small tweaks across the board. From using ultrasonic flow monitoring equipment, upgrading condensers, maximising unit shut-down and start-up phases, installing or expanding a Flare Gas Recovery System, switching from fuel oil to fuel gas, purging the flare with surplus N2 and many other small enhancements, customers can shave small percentage points off of their flaring. The cumulative effect, however, can be significant.
Case in point: The Permian Basin in Texas, US. In 2018, oil companies wasted a record $750 million worth of natural gas. The EDF recommended a 98% gas capture policy, which they predicted would reduce 84% of routine flaring volumes and 50% of total flared volumes there – ‘without cost.’ “Not only is routine flaring the cheapest type of flaring for operators to eliminate, it would create significant value for the resource as a whole.” Reducing flaring is a no-brainer. Petrogenium can help asset owners turn an Orderly Transition into The Energy Transition.
Contact Eric Hans Wolff for more information.