Natural gas flaring in West Texas severely under-reported, satellite analysis shows

A study by the Environmental Defense Fund found that oil companies burned off nearly twice as much natural gas as they reported to regulators. An industry trade group disputed the findings. A study by the Environmental Defense Fund found that oil companies burned off nearly twice as much natural gas as they reported to regulators. An industry trade group disputed the findings. Photo: Angus Mordant / Bloomberg Photo: Angus Mordant / Bloomberg Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Natural gas flaring in West Texas severely under-reported, satellite analysis shows 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Oil and gas companies in West Texas’ Permian Basin burned off nearly twice as much natural gas they reported to regulators, according to an analysis of satellite data by an environmental advocacy group.

Operators are required to report the amount of flaring, or burning of excess product, to the Texas Railroad Commission, the state agency that oversees the energy industry. In 2017, companies reported 55 billion cubic feet of flared natural gas. But an analysis performed on satellite data collected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration indicates that 104 billion cubic feet of flared gas may have been flared, according to the Environmental Defense Fund.

The Environmental Defense Fund’s analysis suggests that operators burned away 4.4 percent of all natural gas produced in the Permian that year, valuing the lost gas at $322 million. S&P Global Market Intelligence, a research and data analysis firm, reached similar conclusions of severely under-reported flaring in a report published in October.

The S&P Global analysis also used data from NOAA satellite scans, which analysts said are more accurate than reports companies file with regulators. Between 2012 and 2017, the analysis found, oil and gas companies in Texas reported only about half the volumes of gas burned compared to what the satellites showed.

Greenhouse gases

Burning associated gas, the raw natural gas that is a mixture of methane and other hydrocarbons, emits carbon dioxide and air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide. Flaring has been found to be a significant contributor to U.S. greenhouse emissions and pose a significant health risk for local communities and those who work in oil fields.

Natural gas is a byproduct of oil production, and in booming West Texas, large volumes are being produced along with record amounts of oil. A lack of pipeline capacity has left energy companies with lots of natural gas with no place to go, according to S&P Global analysts, and provided an incentive to under report flaring to maintain high levels of crude production.

Colin Leyden, senior manager of the Environmental Defense Fund who authored the organization’s analysis, is skeptical that building more pipelines would prevent companies from under-reporting flaring — absent stricter regulations.

“If it’s inconvenient they’ll just flare it,” said Leyden. “There’s been a problem since 2014, so what is a reasonable amount of time for the industry to solve this?”

The Texas Railroad Commission said in a statement that operators are required to follow the agency’s regulations.

“The RRC takes enforcement action against any operator found in violation of our rules or permit conditions,” wrote Ramona Nye, an agency spokeswoman.

Boots on the ground

John Tintera, president of the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers, an industry advocacy organization, said he doubted the accuracy of analyses. Satellite imagery, because its a snapshot in time, may not capture the correct amounts, he said. He also rejected the notion that operators have an economic reason to mislead regulators.

“Operators have an incentive to accurately report because of the respect they have for regulators and respect for the operation rules have been in place for a long time,” Tintera said. “The Railroad Commission has inspectors that are better than satellites. They work in every town, and they visit hundreds of wells every week. I would say boots in the field beats satellite imagery.”

erin.douglas@chron.com