As part of its Green Deal, the European Commission will unveil, on 14 December, a proposal for a regulation to better equip the European Union against methane (CH4) leakage in the energy sector. A few weeks before the official presentation, a draft proposal leaked to the press revealed the main points of the text.
According to the draft document, the regulation will aim to achieve a threefold objective: (1) to improve the accuracy of information on the main sources of methane emissions associated with energy produced and consumed in the EU; (2) to ensure further effective mitigation of methane emissions across the energy supply chain in the EU; (3) to reduce methane emissions related to fossil energy imported into the EU.
It will apply to the entire value chain of fossil fuel activities.
Strengthening monitoring, reporting and verification
For the Commission, the first step to reduce methane emissions in the energy sector is to strengthen the monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) of these emissions.
According to the draft, operators in this sector would be required to provide information on their methane emissions to national competent authorities designated by EU Member States.
In particular, they would have to submit a report containing source emissions - estimated using generic but source-specific emission factors - within 12 months of the date of entry into force of the Regulation.
This would be accompanied by two further reports: one containing direct (rather than estimated) measurements of emissions at source (to be provided within 24 months), the other containing the same measurements, supplemented by measurements of emissions at site level (to be provided within 36 months and annually thereafter).
If there are significant differences between the emissions measured at the source and at the site, additional measurements should be carried out.
Reducing emissions
Contrary to what the European Parliament called for (see EUROPE 12817/8), the document does not set targets for methane emissions mitigation.
It simply states that operators “shall take all reasonable measures available to them to minimise methane emissions in their operations”, without giving further details.
However, the Commission says it intends to mitigate these emissions by strengthening the detection and repair of methane leaks, as well as by limiting venting (the release of unburned methane into the atmosphere) and flaring (the controlled burning of methane for disposal in a device designed for such burning).
Leak detection and repair
According to the draft, the EU institution intends to oblige operators to submit to the competent authorities a “leak detection and repair programme”.
They would also be required to carry out leakage detection and the repair of all relevant components under their responsibility.
The deadlines for these two obligations are not yet fixed.
Thereafter, leak detection and repair checks should be repeated within three or six months (the Commission has not yet decided) of the previous check.
In addition, operators should repair or replace all components that emit a certain amount of methane, i.e. 500 parts per million (ppm) or more, no later than xx days (yet to be defined) after the leak is detected. It should be noted that the 500 ppm threshold appears in square brackets in the draft documents and could therefore be revised.
Operators would then be required to carry out an inspection of these components as soon as possible after the repair, and no later than 15 days or one month (the Commission has not yet decided) thereafter, to ensure that the repair has been successful.
For components with emissions below a certain ppm level, not yet fixed in the text, they should check that the extent of leakage has not increased by inspecting these components at the latest one or three months (the text includes both options) after the emissions were detected.
Venting and flaring
The draft proposal provides for a ban on venting, except in certain specific circumstances, for example in the event of an emergency or malfunction or where it is unavoidable for the repair of components.
In such circumstances, operators would also be required to demonstrate that flaring is not technically feasible or would compromise the safety of operations or personnel, thus forcing them to opt for venting.
According to the text, flaring would also be more restricted and could only be used if it could be demonstrated that reinjection, on-site use or shipment of the methane to a market is not possible for reasons other than economic considerations.
Routine flaring would be prohibited.
Emissions outside the EU
Regarding energy-related methane emissions occurring outside the EU, the draft project does not respond to the Parliament’s request to make all imports of fossil fuels into the EU subject to compliance with EU methane regulations (see EUROPE 12817/8).
However, the Commission intends to combat these emissions by introducing “transparency tools”.
This would require importers to provide information on emissions from the production and transport of imported fossil fuels to the competent authorities of the Member State where the import takes place. This information would then be forwarded to the Commission.
The institution also plans to establish a public database of countries and companies that export fossil fuels to the EU. This would indicate, among other things, whether the country has signed the Paris Agreement or whether it has put in place measures to regulate methane emissions from the energy sector.
In addition, it wants to establish a public global monitoring tool showing the magnitude, recurrence and location of methane super-emitters. Where this tool identifies particularly high emissions, the Commission will establish bilateral dialogues with the countries concerned.
See the draft regulation: https://bit.ly/30Z3agw
See its annexes: https://bit.ly/3DSx6d3 (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)