UNEP: Oil and Gas Methane Partnership Initiative to Manage Methane Emissions from Upstream Oil and Gas Operations 

The Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP), launched at the 2014 United Nations (UN) Secretary General’s Climate Summit, was created by the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) as a voluntary initiative to help companies reduce methane emissions in the oil and gas sector. Governments, international organizations, non-government organizations, and the oil and gas industry collaborate through the OGMP to raise awareness and responsibly address methane emissions. The OGMP provides a protocol to help companies systematically manage their methane emissions from upstream oil and gas operations, as well as offers a credible platform to help member companies demonstrate actual reductions to industry stakeholders.

More than 15 percent of global natural gas production is represented by the 10 OGMP member companies: BP, Ecopetrol, Eni, Equinor, Neptune Energy International SA, Pemex, PTT, Repsol, Shell, and Total.

Key technical partners of the OGMP include the Environmental Defense Fund, the U.S. EPA’s Natural Gas STAR program, and the Global Methane Initiative.

Joining the OGMP

To join the OGMP, organizations must voluntarily commit to the following actions:

• Survey their facilities for nine “core” sources that make up the majority of methane emissions in typical upstream operations
• Evaluate cost-effective technology options to address uncontrolled sources
• Report progress on surveys, project evaluations, and project implementation in a transparent, credible manner that demonstrates results

Member companies survey their operations and report on the number of each core sources in use. Members note how many sources are mitigated and how many are unmitigated, with reference to recommended best-practice options in the OGMP's Technical Guidance Documents. Companies calculate methane emissions from each mitigated source and then report their mitigation projects and respective emission reductions. Annual reports submitted by each partner company are collated by the Coalition Secretariat to track the overall progress of the Partnership.

Interested organizations can join the partnership by contacting the CCAC Secretariat.

OGMP 2.0

With increased awareness and better science on the impact of methane, the OGMP is developing the OGMP 2.0 reporting framework as the gold standard reporting platform on methane. Under the OGMP 2.0 reporting framework, more detailed and transparent information about methane emissions will be provided to industry, civil society, and governments with the long-term objective of incentivizing the use of natural gas with the lowest possible methane emissions intensity. OGMP will also put more focus on partnering with national oil companies and expanding its reach to the midstream and downstream segments of the natural gas supply chain.