Oslo-based research firm Rystad Energy said Jan. 14 that the share of gross natural gas output that is flared at the wellhead in Permian Basin plummeted to a modern shale-era record low in 2020Q4. Rystad said preliminary data show 1.6 percent of Permian gas production was flared in 2020Q4. The absolute amount of flared gas likely averaged around 390 million cubic feet per day in 2020Q4. Rystad said flaring was 1.7 percent in 2020Q3.
Alexandre Ramos Peon, vice president for shale research, said, “One needs to go back to early 2012 to see flaring levels that low. Back then, shale activity was just starting to pick up. Reporting standards 9 years ago were not as reliable. Flaring could have been a bit higher than what we see in the data so it is safe to assert that wellhead flaring has never been this low in the Permian in the shale era.”
The Rystad report added, “Most of the large Permian producers remain committed to their flaring intensity goals and have not demonstrated any sudden uptick based on the latest data. As of the second half of last year, of the 45 largest gas producers in Permian Basin, 20 exhibit a flaring intensity of 1.2 percent and below, and 13 are in the 1.3-2.2 percent range… SM, Ovintiv, Sable, Discovery, Capitan, Diamondback, Parsley (including Jagged Peak), Hunt, Primexx, BTA, DoublePoint, Surge, Rosehill, Marathon, BP, Luxe and Endeavor are among the example of companies that have achieved the most systematic and sizeable reduction in flaring intensity between the second half of 2019 and the first half of 2020 and the first half and second half of last year.”
Enverus estimated flaring intensity for Permian Basin in December, as measured via satellites, was 315 MMcfd. Estimates from satellite data have been steady from October to December 2020 with flared volumes ranging from 310 to 320 MMcfd – a level that remains depressed compared to highs in 2018 and 2019.