Bloomberg News: Gas Coalition Beats Its Own Methane Emissions Target Years Early

Gas Coalition Beats Its Own Methane Emissions Target Years Early

Posted Nov. 15, 2018, 9:56 AM

A group of U.S. natural gas companies beat its target to reduce methane emissions to 1 percent of what’s produced and delivered, an objective they set for 2025.

The ONE Future group of 16 gas producers, pipeline operators and utilities—including Kinder Morgan Inc., Southwestern Energy Co. and Southern Co. Gas—said only about 0.6 percent of the gas they handled was vented in 2017. The group was formed in 2014.

The announcement comes as industry is coming under scrutiny from environmental groups after the federal government proposed loosening some regulation of methane emissions. The changes include reducing the frequency with which oil and gas operators must monitor their equipment for leaks.

“We are paid to transport that methane molecule, not to lose it, so we put a lot of effort into minimizing emissions,” said Tom Hutchins, vice president of environmental, health and safety for the gas business at Kinder Morgan, which owns or operates more than 80,000 miles (130,000 kilometers) of pipelines in North America.

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To contact the reporters on this story: Ryan Collins in Houston at [email protected]; Rachel Adams-Heard in Houston at [email protected]

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Simon Casey at [email protected] Carlos Caminada, Christine Buurma

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