A pioneering project shows a growing demand for cleaner, responsibly sourced gas, and a path to addressing the climate change impact of methane from natural gas production.

Under the pilot, US producer EQT will have the majority of its gas production independently certified, using MiQ to quantify its methane emissions and the Equitable Origin standard for the broader ESG footprint.

MiQ and Equitable Origin – the non-profit organisation behind the EO100 Standard – will oversee an independent, third-party audited assessment of EQT’s natural gas production. The project covers the natural gas produced from over 200 of EQT’s well pads in the Marcellus Field, with an estimated initial volume of 40 billion cubic metres for the first 12 months – equivalent to about half of the UK’s annual gas consumption.

Georges Tijbosch, Senior Adviser at MiQ, said: “Methane has 84 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide; reducing this harmful greenhouse gas is one of the most important things we can do to reach our global climate goals in the next decade. EQT’s certification program is an exciting step to differentiating the US natural gas market based on ESG criteria.” 

“Many of the tools and methods needed to substantially reduce methane emissions in the oil and gas industry already exist. MiQ’s certification system is intended to incentivise the sector to invest in technology to significantly cut methane emissions, as part of the achievement of global climate targets.” 

MiQ is a non-profit partnership between RMI and SYSTEMIQ. Find out more here