Permian Basin Producers: Charting A Cleaner Energy Future

Austin, Texas – Methane emissions intensity in the Permian Basin has declined almost 70 percent since 2011, as oil and gas production rose over 320 percent, according to an analysis by Texans for Natural Gas (TNG), a project of the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO).

The analysis, Permian Basin Producers: Charting A Cleaner Energy Future, is TNG’s third report on methane and flaring intensity in the Permian Basin. The report utilizes data from the World Bank, Energy Information Administration (EIA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Rystad Energy to show how Permian producers are leading the world when it comes to responsibly meeting growing global energy demand.

Report Highlights:

• METHANE INTENSITY CONTINUES DOWNWARD TREND: Between 2011 and 2020, methane emissions intensity fell almost 70 percent in the Permian Basin. Since 2011, total oil and gas production in the Permian has increased by over 320 percent.
• FLARING INTENSITY DECLINE:  Flaring intensity in the Permian Basin decreased by over 50 percent from 2019 to 2020.
• PERMIAN PRODUCTION ROSE DESPITE GLOBAL PANDEMIC:  Despite the unusual and unprecedented hurdles the global pandemic presented for oil and gas producers, production in the Permian Basin still managed to increase when compared to 2019, rising over 5 percent.
• PERMIAN CLEANER THAN WORLD COMPETITORS:  The Permian Basin stands apart from other global producers not only because of its prolific production, but by remaining well below the flaring intensity of other global producers. For example, Russia’s flaring intensity was 239 percent higher than the Permian Basin, and 143 percent higher than the United States as a whole.

“This report affirms the role Texas oil and gas needs to play in meeting domestic and global energy demand for the foreseeable future,” said Ed Longanecker, president of TIPRO. “Over the last decade, we’ve seen oil and gas operators come together to present new solutions to reduce methane emissions and flaring. These commitments are yielding significant results that speak for themselves. Permian Basin producers are at the forefront of energy development for their ingenuity, leadership and dedication to minimizing their impact on the environment.”

Intensity – or the amount of methane emitted or flared per barrel of oil equivalent produced – is used as a reliable metric by many organizations across the globe, including the World Bank, the International Energy Agency (IEA) and ONE Future.

The full report can be found here.

About TIPRO

The Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO) is a trade association representing the interests of nearly 3,000 independent oil and natural gas producers and royalty owners throughout Texas. As one of the nation’s largest statewide associations representing both independent producers and royalty owners, members include small businesses, the largest, publicly-traded independent producers, and mineral owners, estates, and trusts.